The Great Beauty

Jep, the writer of a single classic, has written nothing in years. He lives on the success of his one book, spending his time wandering around Rome, going to the most extravagant of parties, concerts, art-shows, and galleries in search of "The Great Beauty” which he has not yet encountered, and probably never will, if he and the filmmaker, Paolo Sorrentino are to be believed. All he really can look forward to is death. At one point in the film, he even pleads with a magician to make him disappear. However, a film with such an ugly and despairing outlook and subject matter also manages to be one of the most aurally and visually satisfying films in recent memory. What a contradiction!

Jep (and Sorrentino) clearly believes that the elite, and all of their frivolous activities, are morally bankrupt and utterly hypocritical. This is made clear in the film's key scene in which Jep dismantles the carefully maintained illusions of a fellow socialite who had the misfortune of pushing him too far. All of their attempts to capture beauty, or anything of meaning, are empty. A “trick,” he says. Fine. But what is the alternative, I wonder? Jep sees that all of his peers and himself lack something, yet he nor the film never articulate what that is. Both are content to drink in the excess and enjoy whatever fleeting pleasures this life provides -- though rightfully acknowledging that that's all they are, fleeting pleasures -- without searching for anything lasting.

This film is not merely misogynistic, it is misanthropic, a philosophy firmly against the wonders I witnessed, both natural -- in the many beautiful sunrises and shots of the sea and flowing water -- and man-made -- as part of the subject matter in Rome's artworks and architecture, and as part of the style in the editing, score, and sound design. Rome, being both an example of what humanity at its finest and most destructive can achieve, is the ideal setting for this story. If there is one place where such beauty and ugliness can coexist, Rome is it. This, for me, is perfectly encapsulated in the Coliseum, shown briefly but spectacularly in one shot with the sun rising behind it on the background while Jep, in closeup, walks across the screen on the foreground, failing to notice it. If only Sorrentino could turn a little more of his considerable talents on the good, he could have had an instant classic. Instead, he’s fascinated by the horrid, which, again, has never been so stunningly (though not attractively) depicted, an absurdity illustrated by a hard-partying blue-haired dwarf, among other indelible images.

So where do you find this Great Beauty? For me the answer is tied up with a specific section of Rome Sorrentino never bothers to show. His view of the Chuch -- apart from the saintly nun, who like him is entrenched in the path of uncovering the mystery of beauty -- seems to be that it is just another facet of Rome's elite. At one point a cardinal in line to become pope tells a fellow cardinal that he will meet a living saint. "At the Holy father's," he is asked. "No. At Jep's." The portrayal is not wholly unsympathetic, though. Jep seems to believe that he might find answers in the church. If only anyone in a position to counsel him would notice! He tries to approach the cardinal, but is simply waved away by a man who only cares about food, the only topic the character talks about in his scenes.

Sorrentino suggests that maybe Jep did come across the Great Beauty once in his life, during an encounter with a woman that he would never forget, even after 40 years. Part of the elusive nature of beauty must certainly be hidden in this gorgeous scene; it is beautiful. But instantly, something happens to turn Jep astray. It is not clear when the scene takes place, but I would argue that this was right after he wrote his book, or perhaps it is the subject of that book. Either way, he has been stuck there for all of his life. It is in that scene that his quest for a fuller understanding of beauty begins, but also the moment that it is doomed to fail, blinding his perspective to all else but what is right in front of him. After the encounter, he looks for beauty where he will never find it.

In the end, I appreciated the careful study of human vanity, and, despite its creators best intention, a lasting beauty did shine through the film, and I suspect it will stay with me after the bitter aftertaste of Jep and Sorrentino’s worldview, which is one and the same, washes off.

Verdict- 3/4
The Great Beauty 2h 22min. R.