Federico Fellini: Interviews

Conversations With Filmmakers Series

by Federico Fellini (Editor), Bert Cardullo (Editor)

The films of Federico Fellini (1920-1993) deal equally with truth-tellers and pretenders, realists and fabulists. His colorful, surreal vision of cinema is so distinctive that the term "Felliniesque" is common among film buffs, even those who have not seen any of his films. This collection of interviews spans the director's entire career from 1957 to 1993. Fellini began making films shortly after World War II, working in a style similar to the Italian neorealists Roberto Rossellini and Vittorio De Sica, but he soon distinguished himself from them by introducing elements of his dreams into his movies. While his earlier masterpieces--such as I Vitelloni , La Strada , and The Nights of Cabiria --are realistic in setting and plot, his post-1960 films are baroque and surrealist. Even 8 1/2 , one of his recognized masterpieces and widely regarded as a veiled autobiography, is deeply fantastical. Fellini's feverish imagination is evident in interviews as well. His friends and enemies alike were quick to call him a buggiardo--a big liar. It is perhaps more accurate to note that Fellini understood the inherent theatricality of all performance, including the interview form, and that artifice is just as revealing as plain truth. In his conversations with interviewers and the media, he often blurred the line between truth and sheer invention. Bert Cardullo is a professor of English and American literature at Fatih University in Istanbul, Turkey. He is the author of In Search of Selected Writings on International Film Art and Vittorio De Director, Actor, Screenwriter , among other books.

Genres: Film

208 pages, Hardcover

First published August 18, 2006

About the author

Federico Fellini was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time. His films have ranked highly in critical polls such as that of Cahiers du cinéma and Sight & Sound, which lists his 1963 film ​8 1⁄2 as the 10th-greatest film.

Reviews

[Bahman Bahman · Rating 2 out of 5]

"به راحتی می‌توان متوجه شد که چرا شورلت سیاه‌رنگ فدریکو فلینی به یک نیمه افسانه تبدیل شده است. در کتابی که این اواخر درباره‌ی شب‌های کابیریا منتشر شده است، یادداشتی بلند به قلم پی‌یر پائولو پازولینی وجود دارد که این اتومبیل پیل پیکر را توصیف می‌کند. از طرف دیگر اگر تجربه‌ی نشستن در کنار فلینی در هنگام رانندگی را داشته باشید مطمئنا متوجه خواهید شد که چرا دوستان او هرگز این ماشین را از یاد نمی‌برند. در نگاه اول، رانندگی فلینی بسیار آشفته و ناخوشایند است. از میان سایر ماشین‌ها مارپیچ می‌راند، از چند سانتی‌متری کنار جدول‌های پیاده‌رو رد می‌شود و چراغ چشمک‌زن زرد را آنچنان حریصانه رد می‌کند تو گویی در مسابقه‌ی رالی کوهستان شرکت کرده است. اما پس از گذشت تنها ده دقیقه اطمینان شما به او و رانندگی او به دو دلیل، بیشتر می‌شود. نخست آن‌که، فلینی هیچ مقصد مشخصی در ذهن ندارد. او عاشق رانندگی است. او سرخوشانه در لحظه‌ی حال به سر می‌برد. می‌دانم که او به یک نوشگاه خواهد رفت به کسی تلفن خواهد کرد و بعد به سراغ یکی از دوستانش خواهد رفت و او را نیز بر این ارابه‌ی سرکش سوار خواهد کرد. واضح است که رانندگی سرگرمی و عامل اصلی او برای دور شدن از زندگی عادی است."

[Damian · Rating 3 out of 5]

An intriguing yet uneven autobiography.

[Mrjeffreymiller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice to have a collection of his thoughts in one place.