Eva Margriet Josette Smits (10448888)
MA Thesis Mediastudies: Filmstudies
University of Amsterdam
July 2015
Supervisor: Mr. G. van der Pol
Rethinking the Film Star Definition: the Transition of Italian
Male Actors from National to International Stars
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I wish to thank, first and foremost, my parents for providing this opportunity, for their loving support and for always having faith in me. My sisters for inspiring, caring and supporting me, my
supervisor and all teachers for their patient guidance and good advices. I am grateful to my roommates for offering the needed study breaks and for facing all ups and downs while writing this thesis, and to my friends for their mental help and encouragement.
INDEX
INTRODUCTION 4
1. STARSTUDIESANDTHECONSTRUCTIONOFTHEFILMSTAR
1.1 Dyer’s Stars 8 1.2 Popular culture and film stars as celebrities 11
1.3 Conclusion and research method 15
2. MARCELLO MASTROIANNI: STARDOMBYTHESUCCESSOF LA DOLCE VITA
2.1 Marcello Mastroianni: a first impression 19 2.2 Biography and filmography of Marcello Mastroianni 24 2.3 La Dolce Vita (1960) 31
2.4 Discussion 34
3. NANNI MORETTI: STARDOMBYTHEOFF-SCREENCHARACTER
3.1 Nanni Moretti: a first impression 36
3.2 Biography and filmography of Nanni Moretti 39
3.3 Caro Diario (1993) 44
3.4 Discussion 48
4. ROBERTO BENIGNI: STAROFTHECOMEDIANINATRAGEDY
4.1 Roberto Benigni: a first impression 51
4.2 Biography and filmography of Robert Benigni 53
4.3 La vita è bella (1997) 55
4.4 Discussion 59
5. DISCUSSION 60
INTRODUCTION
In the academic field of film studies the star studies are a separate and unfortunately small branch. An exploration of the literature on star studies shows that this field has mostly been studied in terms of representation through star image, the construction of narrative and audience receptions. This has led to a wide paradigm of different, but also reoccurring definitions and theories on the phenomenon of film stars and what they are like and how we should study them. What has been neglected is the connection between European film stars and Hollywood film stars, which are seen as two separate worlds in which stars function as constructs of economic, social and cultural representations.Also, what has been missing is the visibility of the actual transition from an individual actor or actress to the status of film star in one of his or her films that provided the optimal star-born environment. Exactly these two angles of examination will be used to rethink and redefine the film star definition in the context of the European cinema in order to complete the existing work in the star studies.
Thus,the main question of this thesis will be how analyzing three Italian stars by their physical looks and style of acting gives meaning to the film’s structure, and as a result how this structure reveals (or hints at) their transition from national to international stardom in their career. I will analyze the stars using the following structure: first I define the bodily looks and physical
characterizations of the star by a historical-biographic portrait? of his personality and career, by the roles the actor played and the films he appeared in. Then I translate these outcomes to the portrayed character in the film: What stands out? What are their features? How does the
structuring of the character give meaning to the film and its structure? The last step is to connect this analysis with the transition-phase: does this scheme of the performer show, partly, the possible transition from national to international stardom?
The main purpose of this thesis is to rethink the accepted theories by reflecting on the road to success of individual film stars as seen in their films. What makes the star studies so interesting to study is that stars may be the most successful ambassadors of the commercial production and exhibition of films worldwide. Also, Richard Dyer, the renowned theorist on star studies, teaches
us that not all actors are stars. Just a few are chosen by the audience to be named film stars. This conclusion raises the question how regular actors differ from stars and which factual elements contribute to the status of stardom. Stars are the representation of cultural changes in society:
they are central to mass media like newspapers, tabloids and television; they function to construct a feeling of nationalism and are involved in marketing and economics; and, perhaps the most important reason: they are interesting. “Film stars attract attention”. With this line, Martin Shingler starts his book on the star studies, Star Studies: A Critical Guide in which he provides an overview of key writers, texts, methodologies and academic schools that discuss the star studies. The main concern of this thesis is to examine something that Shingler and other authors left open for
research: the reason why the European (or in this case Italian) film star does not fit the Hollywood film star model that has been working as a role model for almost all stars and all scholars.
Obviously, the Italian star system developed in a different way than the Americanstar system, therefore the Italian star model should differ from the contemporary models used by academics. Unfortunately, the studies on European cinema provided scholars with theories and models almost identical to their American models. European cinema should be influenced by avant-garde,
culture, nationalism and the history of the film industries. It turns out that, when star studies get involved, there is an apparent pattern similar to the Hollywood model of ideological elements, stereotypes, sexuality and returning comparisons with Hollywood, which is all worked out in a context of culture, nationalism and society. The study of Italian national cinema needs a deeper and more focused gazeon the male star itself. The star needs to be stripped down to his
roots/beginner’s status? as a common actor, followed by exploring and illustrating the ‘bricks’ that build up his star persona and status obtained through international recognition. Most authors describe in detail what personal characteristics, visual elements and external factors such as the filmic environment and the media define the Hollywood film star from different perspectives. The existing models and theories are a tool to rediscover the Italian stars and to explore what is not mentioned before: what in the actors’ career marks the transition from actor to film star and how is thisto be seen in the actors’ cinematic life. By closely analyzing three Italian film stars – Marcello Mastroianni, Nanni Moretti and Roberto Benigni– this thesis will provide new insights to stardom
by discovering the signs of stardom in the context of the film, the period of the film release and in the context of cinema. This thesis aims to reformulate clichés on audience receptions, stereotypes and presumptions that most theorists use and restrict the wider vision on other assumptions with regard to new film star models. Three male Italian stars have been chosen for this study will be presented as an example for remodeling the star phenomenon in European cinema: other scholars can use this study as a tool to examine other European countries or other (female or male) Italian stars. The choice for male stars is inspired by the problem with the small amount of studies done on masculinity and the female gaze, in contrast to the prevailing complex nature of the male gaze. The study on these well-known Italian film stars and the connection between these individuals can contribute to existing studies concerning male representations and masculine characteristics in cinema. Therefore,these Italian stars represent the Italian cinema at its best in modern times, starting from the golden years of 1960. Since they are all authentic and unique but share common characteristics, together, they can function as the image of the Italian male actor who experienced at some point in his filmic career a moment of acceleration to the next level; of star status; since we, the film audience, have acknowledged them as being more than an actor. Also, they have already established a good reputation that other actors and stars have yet to earn. The following chapter will focus on the theories and methods of situated authors which are
exemplary tothis model, for other authors keep referring to these prevailing arguments and models. It is important to deduce the most important branches of the star studies to create a model for the American film star that is as complete as possible, that is compact and flexible, but can generalize the film stars at the same time. It is impossible to scrutinize all authors who have contributed to the academic debate with renewing insights, especially with all the currently available literature in this field of study. Therefore the next chapter shall focus on the most important authors (“most important” hereby being determined by their ground-breaking theories which other scholars have continuously criticized and praised and worked on) and the greatest schools of thought and philosophy that are available, including the best reasoned historical and contemporary theories. By connecting the theories, schools in film studies and key points in the
literature and criticizing them in the light of the developed research question, this thesis will create the most comprehensive model possible to provide a doctrine for the theorization of the Italian film star mechanisms. Thus, in the coming chapter, a summary of theorists and their developed models will be given, as well as tools and case studies accompanied by personal interest in the blank spots that are left open here for further exploration and discussion. In the next chapters, the individual male stars and their films, namely Marcello Mastroianni in La Dolce Vita, Nanni Moretti in Caro Diario and Roberto Benigni in La Vita è bella, will be discussed. The choice for these three films is based on the fact that (among others) these films each mark the breakthrough to
international success. To strengthen the chapters’ conclusions and to discuss the wider range of the retrospective debate that ranges from the actor’s whole career, other films that these stars played in will be briefly analyzed. As much as these particular films can be considered the catalyst for the actors’ admittance to the world of stardom, it is also important to consider the other films their careers, to avoid a too narrow analysis. The final chapter will provide the conclusions of this investigation and suggest a new model in which Italian male stars are to be approached by scholars as an example of the paradigm in which European stars should be examined.
1.
STAR STUDIES AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE FILM STAR
In the first part of this chapter I will discuss the most important theories that are present in the field of star studies. I will discuss most of the assumptions and arguments I have encountered as part of the argument that – even though there are many theories already existing – the ultimate, combined theory on stardom is still incomplete. In other words, there is not an ultimate nor
unambiguous definition of the film star. For that reason, I will complement the existing models and start with a fresh vision on the topic of stardom by the method I will demonstrate further on in my thesis. In the second part of this chapter I will introduce my research method I have developed out of the paradigm of the studies of actors and their performance; in other words acting.
1.1 Dyer’s Stars
First, Richard Dyer’s publication Stars (first edition published in 1979) will be discussed. Dyer’s work on star studies can be considered to be a classic, as it is repeatedly cited by other authors, yet also tested. His work is now somewhat outdated, but modern writers still refer to his book, though some of them have tried to falsify is theories. Therefore, this chapter shall introduce the highlights of his theoretical framework and the essence of his contribution to the study of stars. My aim is to add the previously undiscovered themes and methods offered in this thesis to this traditional work in order to keep the academic debate open for future, nontraditional views on existing theories.
Clearly Dyer sees film stars as constructions: images made by different materials (media, audiences, the film companies, marketing tools) and therefore they are products of an industry. Central in his book is the role of the audience in relation to the actors, as it is clear performers heavily influence the perception of the viewers by their play and style. The theory of the star with the important notion that actors are to be found in media texts only, not as real people, Dyer suggests in his introduction how stars gain their cultural (inter)national status through their image in media texts, in which they are portrayed as fictional characters rather than real people: “Stars are images in media texts, and such are products of Hollywood.” (10). Dyer connects the notions of stars as characters and stars as real people through the concept of authentication: “[…] how an
actor establishes a correspondence between the character as played and the social norms of the time – or the way he or she embodies a social type […] Stars, as I have already suggested, collapse this distinction between the actors’ authenticity and the authentication of the character she or he is playing.” (23). This definition returns with the findings of the study about the
characterizations of the film character in the films, and helps in asking how these characterizations giving meaning to the film’s structure.
Also, in all of his chapters, Dyer connects stars with ideology, described here as “the set of ideas and representations in which people collectively make sense of the world and the society in which they live.” (2). Out of this ideology the stars bring their character to perfection in order to connect their stardom personality with the film character.
In a discussion about the factor of “success”, Dyer provides the key points of success that appear in the life of the film star. It started in the star system and involves the following elements: “(i) that ordinariness is the hallmark of the star, (ii) that the system rewards talent and
‘specialness’, (iii) that luck, ‘breaks’, which may happen to anyone typify the career of the star, and (iv) that hard work and professionalism are necessary for stardom.” (2). When researching the transition from national to international stardom, it became indeed apparent that success is a key factor that makes the difference between national to worldwide brand awareness.
In the third part of his work, Dyer actually provides the tool for my examination of the star’s image in relation with the films signifying elements the audiences see: “For us it is not enough simply to say that such-and-such a film uses such-and-such an aspect of a star’s image: we have to show how.” (143). In conclusion: the following abbreviated model emerges from Dyer’s work: we study film stars as image texts, shaped by the ideological landscape of society they function in.
However, this thesis would like to emphasize the actors’ role as real people as well, by searching for physical characterizations, habits and style elements in the star itself that define the star.
Also, Dyer suggests a model that provides a cognitive analysis of the film staras an image with many layers and structures; a very analytical approach. In its conclusion he briefly mentions the
aspects of beauty, pleasure and other emotions he experiences as a film viewer when watching the film stars. The physical appearance of the film star is slightly under-exposed in these theories, and in my opinion, our first impression of the film star as film audiences, of his or her physical characterizations andlooks, and consequently our fascination and adoration for this star, are factors that need to be further explored in this work.
Later, Dyer published an update on his classical study on stars: Heavenly Bodies: Film Stars and Society in 1986. With the close reading of three famous stars – Marilyn Monroe, Paul Robeson and Judy Garland – in the contexts of their films and fan culture and the analysis of their star persona, Dyer comesremarkably close to my own research. The close analysis of stars in the cult of fans and in the public sphere is linked to my analysis as well as I explore this field as a bridge that connects the stars’ careers to the reception of the audiences. While I do appreciatethis wealth of background information and Dyer’s thorough studies on stars that are very useful for scholars who want to learn more about these particular case studies; his method is not renewing in contrast to his earlier publications and is now used as a basis for new explorations and re-conceptualizing. In conclusion to Dyer’s work it could be said that in the seventies in star studies classic Hollywood was the central object of study; while starting at the twenty-first century, ome authors distinguished themselves from the leading Hollywood minded movements in star studies (see Martin Shingler). Similar to this argument, I will try to demonstrate that national cinema in Italy deserves a description of mechanisms and theories of its own cinematic culture, with respect to the Italian film studies and European cinema in general, thereby turning away from the existing wave of scholars focusing on Hollywood. It is my mission to build a bridge between Hollywood and European cinema when analyzing the star image.
I will now discuss the other theorists who did not only focus on stars and their audiences, but also on celebrity culture, the model of the star system, popular culture and ideological constructions of stardom.
In the same period of Dyers publication we could read authors like Alexander Walkers Stardom, the Hollywood Phenomenon with an industrial vision of the earliest Hollywood model in the silent era and with less focus on the actor’s career or life. After 1970, Dyer’s position (and that of authors who have read Dyer as a seminal and leading work) was challenged by critics of cultural studies and the influence of new waves in film studies and therefore the history of academic discourse on this topic. This change reveals that Dyer remained consistent in the current of the existing model, but was also simultaneously surpassed by new approaches and academic schools and additional notes to his theory. If you are looking for a reader that contains all disciplines of cultural studies of the celebrity and star studies, Su Holmes’ and Sean Redmond’s volume Stardom and Celebrity: A Reader, published in 2007, is the reference work you need. In this volume, Holmes and Redmond are stepping away from the topic of stardom in a collection of essays, divided in six sections, about fame culture and celebrities in general, with elementary sociological and economic theories that can be related to film and cultural studies in general. This volume is a classic example of expanding the boundaries of the field of star studies, wherein the authors have researched one of two singular terms that relate to stardom and star studies; and together, are combined in an complete work that serves as fine study material for scholars. In this theoretical framework my research can offer a higher level of scrutiny at specific elements that create the star.
When studying the works of Paul McDonald, David Marshall and Richard DeCordova – names that must be mentioned when studying this subject – it must be acknowledged that they all delivered neat and welcome additions to the field of star studies, focusing on their own concepts and theories. In short, Paul McDonalds’ Star System: Hollywood’s Production of Popular Identities focuses on stardom as a system in which structural mechanisms promote the star as a product of the film industries. Subsequently, this ideological construct produces popular identities. What is left open here are of course the elements of image, semiotics and physical representations. The angle by which McDonald approaches the star studies is a good addition to existing star studies, but for those interested in examinations of the star image and phenomenon it is too
writes about stars from the perspective of the companies who deliver processes of production for the consummating audiences. McDonald connects the star image in the industry of Hollywood to principles of power and organized labor. Status, a privileged position, extraordinary qualities and sequential respect seem to be the characteristics of the real film star. McDonald’s paragraph on star labor and image can be summarized in terms of the celebrity. Celebrity studies should be involved in my research. Celebrity culture is the collective in which film stars dwell and possess the power and agency of the celebrity. Thus I will treat this branch of star studies further on with some additional, marginal notes on the relation between celebrity and film star.
The celebrity phenomenon is one of the topics of David Marshall’s publication Celebrity and Power: Fame in Contemporary Culture. Marshall explores/examines the power of media that influences celebrities, but also the celebrities’ own power with regard to society. What happens in the public sphere (in society) by certain people is described as follows:
[…] a cluster of individuals are given greater presence and a wider scope of activity and agency than are those who make up the rest of the population. They are allowed to move on the public stage - while the rest of us watches. They are allowed to express themselves quite individually and idiosyncratically - while the rest of the members of the population are constructed as demographic aggregates. We tend to call these overtly public individuals celebrities…[…]
moreover, the celebrity as a public individual who participates openly as a marketable commodity serves as a powerful type of legitimation of the political economic model of exchange and value – the basis of capitalism - and extends that model to include the individual. (preface).
In conclusion, film stars have some power and agency over other people and are constructed out of political and economic concerns of the film industry. Still, the audiences and film critics decide who enters the star world as we agree with Dyer. Focusing commerce and profits leaves open the gap between ‘real’ and the construct; in other words the real actor as an autonomous character and the construct of the star persona?.
Richard DeCordova dedicated his book Picture Personalities: The Emergence of the Star System in America to a complete historical overview of the occurrence of the Hollywood star system and how? it was developed. DeCordova understands he should be vigilant not to “oversimplify the systematic component by arguing that all stars come out of the same mold, nor exaggerate the extent to which the individual can be autonomous from the system that speaks for him and her.” (11). DeCordova’s historical approach offers an extending paragraph on the appearing on the first star Florence Lawrence. He adds off-screen pictures of magazines and newspapers to the on-screen performance and certainly does manage to connect all levels of knowledge that audiences gained fromthe star system and star image.
David Marshall (Celebrity and Power: Fame in Contemporary Culture) is relating his vision of the construction of celebrities to the same historical categories as DeCordova provides for the development of the star, and he determines the role of the audiences as an important factor to test stardom. The movement of the star in his career is what I seek to discover in the following thesis. Academics are aware of the influences of fame in contemporary culture on film audiences. These influences should not be neglected, especially considering the fact that in the life of the stars, fame and public attention are important parts of their expression. That does not mean that actual textual analyses of the media text, the very body of the film and literally the body of the actor should be forgotten. This textual method is leading in Bruce Babington’s British Stars and Stardom: from Alma Taylor to Sean Connery. Here we find specific and focused research on British stardom. Babington jumps into the neglected European cinema field with an attempt to a less theoretical framework that is not only referring to Hollywood cinema but also to national British cinema. The focus on a few stars is also seen in Dyer’s Heavenly Bodies and the Star Decades collection of editors Murray Pomerance and Adrienne L. McLean, which includes their contribution to several sequential film decades and analyzes the stars representing the face of that era against the background of Hollywood’s cultural history.
To complete the literary framework I would like to refer to the critical reflection on star studies by Robert Shail as presented in his essay “Studying Film Stardom: Methods and Debates.” He
criticizes the academic discourse consisting of many different angles to study the same topic – stardom – and suggests how the star studies should develop in the next few years, as new
scholars refresh the persisting and dominant perspectives on celebrity culture and star image. He, as do I, admits that theorists such as Dyer use some (extremely) restricted types and
specifications in their analyses. Operating in a wider field of pluralistic media contents and less dominant prejudices will provide more space for renewal and development of this paradigm in film studies. The approach of star studies should be as flexible and susceptible to modern cultural, economic and social changes as real life is nowadays. In other words, the star studies should fit new representations and images just as the stars physical bearing, behavior and life style has heavily changed over the years since the 1920s until today. Some attempts at connecting stardom to contemporary Hollywood can be read in Thomas Austin’s and Martin Barker’s Contemporary Hollywood Stardom of 2003 and Angela Ndalianis’ and Charlotte Henry’s Star in Our Eyes: The Star Phenomenon in the Contemporary Era of 2002. In both publications I have found topics that are associated with the internet and other cultural impacts, such as the stars as marketing tools for product promotion or the appearance of stars in television shows. These developments have changed the way how audiences can get information about their favorite stars through more available channels than ever and also how the stars themselves deal with these improvements. In my thesis I do not search for future perspectives and methods to rediscover the somewhat aged films I have chosen (all are released before 2000), but I do agree that the star studies can use a young and fresh vision on how audiences receive the stars. Through scrutiny of a selected corpus of the Italian stars, I first of all hope to respect the established methods and models that the academics already have offered us scholars, but also to change some minds over the concepts and ideas I present here in order to add this original and renewing study to the current
1.3 Conclusion and research method
After mapping out the academic field of star studies, I can conclude that there is too much splintering and disharmony. Also, there is no unambiguous definition or direction that makes the field less pluralistic and which is also liable to time boundaries and personal interest and
discipline. What it does provide are opportunities to start rediscovering the topic from a new and personal perspective in which the individual expertise can take a step towards the star studies field. In the following chapters I will attempt to do so and at the end I will try to reformulate a definition that derives from my own thesis.
As the aforementioned theories and analyses of authors in this first chapter suggest, not many studies of the art of acting itself are involved with the star studies yet. Paul McDonald notices this phenomenon in his article “Why Study Film Acting? Some Opening Reflections” in More Than a Method: Trends and Traditions in Contemporary Film Performance, edited by Cynthia Baron, Diane Carson and Frank P. Tomasulo. McDonald writes: “Although Dyer offered suggestions for the analysis of performance, star studies developed in such ways that analysis became concerned with the meaning of the performer but not, paradoxically, the meaning of the performance (that is, acting).” (Baron et.al 24). He suggests the need of analyzing film acting as an important element in general film analysis: “[…] it must be because reading the uses of voice and body can inform a larger understanding of only film and of films in general. Analyzing film acting will only become a worthwhile and necessary exercise if the signification of the actor can be seen to influence the meaning of film in some way.” (26). And further on: “The intonations and inflections of an actor’s line readings, and the details of his or her facial expressions, gestures, and postures, all influence what we can know about a character’s situation at any particular time.” (39). I wonder if these elements also influence the career with certain movements forward to the step to international recognition by international audiences, and by that to fame and success. The answer of the discovery of a newborn international star lies maybe not so much in celebrity culture, performance and the history of the star system, but in anatomizing the actor itself.
The goal of my own research is to attempt to indicate what triggers the transition of the national Italian male star to international stardom in the career of the star. This is carried out by a historical-biographical analysis that focuses on the male actor and his physical appearances and behavior, placed in the context of the Italian film cult. The method of acting and character traits of the actor are analyzed in the films that, according to many authors and publications, mark the transition from national to international stardom. These elements that model the star are translated into the film character in the plot: how does this influence the actor and what features are notable? How do these methods, techniques and physical characteristics offer structure and meaning to the film? I will substantiate these answers with examples from the film career of the actor. As a conclusion, I hope to demonstrate that the transitional phase in the actors’ career is visible and explicable. The analysis of the star personality can be reconnected to the literary framework as it can be traced back to theories on stars and ideology, star and image, fan culture, celebrity culture and all that I refer to in the aforementioned theoretical framework. Also, I hope that my method can offer
scholars a tool for studying star studies with focus on the European stars with other cases as well. In the conclusion I will formulate a new definition of the Italian film star out of my findings as the outcome of my practical theory; in which I connect the literary framework and its many disciplines and visions to my own discipline, vision and attempts to add new theories to the academic field as a scientific contribution. In general, I hope to take position in the star studies debate, with respect to the leading models and theories, in order to open up possibilities for all scholars to reformulate the star definition.
2. MARCELLO MASTROIANNI: STARDOM BY THE SUCCESS OF LA DOLCE VITA
In asking why, where and how stars become stars, I am missing the question when stars become stars. In the first chapter I will present my method of study that will be used for all three stars: analyzing famous Italian actors in films that, according to many film critics, have made them international stars. Focusing on the life-changing moments in a stars career from actor to celebrity, I would like to deepen the actual time situation: the moment that brought international stardom to the actor. Concluding from the first exploration I could say that becoming a star is very time phased. Since this research is on national Italian stars, the focus lies on the transition from
national stardom to international stardom. What exactly does this ‘gap’ contain between these two levels of fame, how does the star reach to this further level and how does he transfer through this gap? Is this phenomenon also visible in the films? Is it possible to see the transition from
performer to star in (more than one) film itself? By exploring the total content of the character I will combine all factors that hopefully leads to a pattern that reveals the transition from national to international stardom.
First, I describe the total appearance of the star in his looks, movement, gesture, voice, speech and costume. The description and function of the bodily looks must be mentioned when analyzing the concept of “star making”, the process that created an atmosphere of international attention to the Italian male stars. The making of a star starts in the internal process of the person itself by the agency of the self in combination with the structure of the film and all related elements that create the final image of the star. I should not lose sight of the mediated appearance of stars. The ‘real’ person is always moving in the context of the filmic environment, thereby subordinated to the structure of the film, therefore in this thesis I will speak of the ‘person’ in its character of the actor. The actors personality, personal skills and talent will filter through the advance constructed plot and film script: the audience would recognize personal style, bodily looks and techniques through the layer of the constructed character. This is what I would like to define as the ‘construction of the international star’. The embodiment of the fictional character is the proficiency that I would like to further investigate here. I will bring the most striking physical characteristics in relation to the
biography and filmography of the star that describe his career and actor’s style at its best. The image could reveal certain striking characteristics and patterns in the actors personality, his life and general filmic behavior. Also, I hope to find out what merits of the stars have been for the national cinema and for their own careers: what kind of value do we attribute to these stars? The analysis of the contextual frame in combination with the specific analysis of the actors physical looks could provide an answer to the question in how these findings give meaning to the film(plot) and the structure of the film itself. If star’s personality and behavior would differ from films before the ‘breakthrough’ film and after, a transition moment may be indicated: in other words, this could reveal what marked the transition of the star to international fame. As an ultimate answer, it will explain why the transition happened at that particular moment. Overall, the research method must be focused on the films itself and my personal observations of the behavior and looks of the stars in the films.
Before the release of their breakthrough-films, these actors ought to be found ‘normal’ actors without the particular star status, or without the international recognition, with no notable fame outside the borders of Italy. The outcome of analyzing these exemplary actors and their films could become the key to the missing spot in the star studies: the analysis of the turning point in an actor’s career in which some of them earn a star status and international fame. My case study could provide a model that can be applied on any national cinema and to national stars in Europe by other scholars.
In the next three chapters I will discuss three famous Italian actors that have situated names in the international film world. I will start with Marcello Mastroianni. Why was it precisely this 1960’s film in which Mastroianni’s part made him world-famous? Also, Nanni Moretti, both director and film star, is seen as an international star. In chapter two I will analyze the film Caro Diario (1994). Moretti’s directing style is highly autobiographical and this film will offer its best example he is the protagonist of the film. In the final chapter I will discuss the case of Roberto Benigni, who has been a star in Italy since his earlier acting years, but have received international attention for his award winning leading role in La Vita e Bella (also directed by Benigni, 1997). Again, I will ask
myself why this particular film was the key for Benigni’s worldwide success and why it happened at this particular moment in his life against the background of modern Italy.
As a start, I will introduce Marcello Mastroianni. The film that constituted his international
breakthrough, La Dolce Vita, tells the story of one week in the life of paparazzo journalist Marcello, played by Marcello Mastroianni, who spends his days with the elite scene of Rome, trying to become a serious writer. He gets fascinated by a lot of women, including the young film star Sylvia, played by Anita Ekberg. He himself trying to find his place in this materialistic world. First, I introduce the actor by studies on his persona and character in many of his films. By analyzing La Dolce Vita at the end of this chapter I will further explore his film’s appearance in the broader context of his filmography .
2.1 Marcello Mastroianni: a first impression
The first impression of the actor is not only based on the opening scene of the particular film, as the introduction of the actor often suggest a certain character, but also on his filmic history as I will consider in the next paragraph. In the opening scene of La Dolce Vita Marcello arrives in a helicopter flying over Rome. He has well-groomed looks and a symmetric face; these characteristics make him look handsome. In this first scene he wears dark sunglasses, dark trousers and a shirt with a tie. This signature outfit returns during the course of the film: sometimes he wears a complete suit and sometimes he loses the sunglasses or the jacket. In conversation with women, he seems to hide behind these glasses, like many film stars and famous people do at parties, because they do not want to be recognized by the paparazzi. In the first few minutes his womanizer-role is immediately confirmed when he is sleeping with a woman. Further on, in a scene together with Anita Ekberg, by the St. Peter’s palace, his eyes have already been focused on her. Ekberg takes off his sunglasses, thereby trying to reveal his emotions and face. The sunglasses are a symbol for his ‘stereotype’ Italian macho, and only a few times his actual emotions set through.
It was no coincidence that his clothes and outfits remained in the fashionable man suit category, as Bruzzi and Church Gibson conclude in the chapter about Mastroianni’s costume style in their
book Fashion Cultures: “Throughout the course of La Dolce Vita, Piero Gherardi, the costume designer, has clothed Marcello in a variety of suits, intended to epitomize the suave, debonair urban bourgeois male and representative of Italian men’s fashion as its best.” (216). The clothes represent his fierce lifestyle in the world of materialism. Pamela Church Gibson remarks the fact that “in his 160 odd screen appearances, Mastroianni’s body is rarely eroticized.” (209). His naked body is not shown in La Dolce Vita and appears only in suits, in different styles, with no glimpse of the undressed body. The absence of it does suggest a natural masculinity in the way it accents the manly attitude and how it labels the gentleman. Also, as the authors suggest: “This stylish image further enhance the extra cinematic association of Mastroianni as Latin Lover.” (216). The suit is the label that could have attract international viewers for representing a Mediterranean style as Bruzzi and Gibson described, and the perfect Italian expertise of tailoring. Attracted to the audience by the perfect fit of the suit, the man in it eventually becomes the figurehead. Not only his clothes, but all of his dark looks refer to a Mediterranean stereotype male in both film and society. This South-European exotic image could have drawn attention to international viewers who eventually referred to this distinct Italian looks as being remarkable and attractive. Marcello offered the ultimate ideological representation of this type of man. His looks are even a stylistic device of the exotic concept and his image is well-considered. Every outfit, movement and detail is part of that total representation. He is of a timeless beauty and not only a reflection of Italy in the 1960s. This ‘timeless’ element may suggest that his rising star would not end up within a couple of films, therefore his legacy will be witnessed by multiple generations of international viewers.
The figure of Mastroianni is fitting the total image of the Marcello character. Although Marcello is a womanizer, he is also a clumsy , insecure and frustrated man. His eyes and glance are foremost friendly and refer to his empathic behavior. His personal characteristics balance between the behaviors of the macho man and the caring lover. There is this particular scene with Sylvia (Anita Ekberg) in which she joins some street musicians and starts dancing. Afterwards she is bothered by the paparazzi and runs away from the photographers. Marcello follows her and takes her with him in his car. In the following scenes he stays with her, observes her and is very caring and soft.
He keeps a discrete distance to Sylvia but tries to gently touch her in a protective way. Not only his friendly looks and posture make him already a gentlemen, his gestures accompany this image. He moves almost inconspicuous, as if he tries to keep the attention away from him. His movements are somewhat slow and well-considered as if he is overthinking every step and action. In these gestures his uncertain behavior is hided as part of his character: in the materialistic world of the rich and famous, he feels displaced and lonely, although he challenges himself to join this group of wealthy people since he must immerse in their lives as part of his job as a paparazzi journalist. Sometimes he is direct and fierce, like when Sylvia and Marcello decide to flee together in his car to get away from the paparazzi. In his subtle gestures lie a feminine side that devalues his hyper masculine label of a lover. Sylvia returns to the city with Marcello. Her boyfriend is furious about her absence and the couple’s flight. He hits Sylvia in the face, and after that he hits Marcello: the latter falls down the ground and is not able to fight back to Sylvia’s boyfriend. From a masculine macho-man perspective, that would be a weak defense and lack of male strength. In particular scenes as such, the image of his unassailable masculinity slowly crumbles by the dichotomy of Marcello’s personality. The power of Mastroianni’s ability to translate both a stereotypical Italian male seducer and a vulnerable friend and caring husband enforces the film’s dynamic narrative.
His movements show some flirting gestures and hints, as he leans forward when talking to women and making eye-contact, in an attempt to receive their attention. These gestures are subtle yet so convincing and powerful because of the repeating pattern of his actions, that here we witness the real womanizer. Also, Marcello’s voice and speech fulfill the image of his total character. He speaks with a soft and gentle tone. He is a man of few words, and remains silent for most of the time. The words he does use seem well-considered. Most of his quotes are somewhat philosophizing: his lines are chosen to express a certain truth or second layer, in which his despair and unhappy feelings come to expression. His general behavior of confusion and doubt is intensified by the way he speaks.
This is illustrated by a scene in which Marcello’s father comes over for a visit and becomes ill, while in fact has drunk too much. While Marcello is worried about his dad’s health, he asks him to stay with him for a deeper reason: “We never see each other,” he tells his father with disappointment in his voice. The disturbed father-son relationship is illustrated in this scene. The Marcello in this scene is a fragile, sensitive man who admits to may live a luxurious life on the outside, but foremost is unhappy and in need of personal attention of his loved-ones. The subtle hints of Marcello’s vulnerability opens the opportunity to the film viewer to adopt a new film star favorite. It is not without doubt that his negative emotions break through the stylistic, untouchable image of the perfect man.
In asking how his acting techniques and methods adjust the total image of the star in this film, I will analyze how Mastroianni’s role gives meaning to the structure of the film. Certainly he is the star in this film. His acting methods show lots of charisma: his inconspicuous and silent, but convincing presence makes him look powerful and right more conspicuous. Next to the explicit character Sylvia – that is, Anita Ekberg in her role as the ultimate ‘diva’ and woman that adores all attention she receives- Mastroianni is a less obvious character: Sylvia’s acting method is to overrate her actions by dancing and showing off with her voluptuous body. This is not seen only in words and behavior but also in body language, such as seen in the famous Trevi fountain scene in which she sensually baths in the fountain with her eyes closed, enjoying the freshness of the water. Wearing a tight dress that is accenting her curvy body she definitely receives attention by the viewer and Marcello, by expressing her feminine body and her sexy looks, only by the subtle movements of her bathing as if she were in her private shower. It pictures an unassailable, almost unreal image of the film star woman she portrays. Mastroianni stands, literally, in her shadow. Although he dresses like the Latin Lover, there is no perfection in that image at all: the image clashes with his soft kindness and modest presence.
On the other hand, Mastroianni shows the Italian temper of Marcello by his passionate reactions in anger or frustration in a few scenes. When Marcello and his wife argue in the car about his flirting behavior, she argues that he is an unloving, confused husband: “You are selfish,
that’s what you are. Your heart is locked, empty,” she cries. This is her reaction to their laborious relationship in which Marcello’s attention is not only directed to his wife but too many other, mostly successful film star women as well. A monogamous lifestyle does not seem to fit his character. Marcello reacts furious: “No, I am a disgrace. And my disgrace is having met you!”. She steps out of the car and walks away. Directly after this rejection he changes his mind and asks her to step back in the car. His contradicting thoughts and behaviors show his inner dissension due to the accumulation of disappointments.
The key scene with the couple fighting over their relationship in the car returns. In the final escalation Marcello hits her in the face and drives away. Later, he returns to pick her up with his car and in the next scene they are sleeping together. This game of abandoning and reconcilement emphasizes the lack of control of Marcello’s emotions and the dichotomy of his life between the generosity of the inner circle of high society and its temptations and the love of his life. In his experience, he loses control of his life. As an actor, Marcello attempts to center the film around his person. By doing so, the film is layered by Marcello’s experiences of the days of his life that the viewer witnesses by his point of view. He portrays an acting style that not only strives for the centering of the film around his person – as the structure of the film leans on his ambiguous character of the unhappy acting happy-, but he also manages to deliver a showpiece of Italian gentlemen style in the Roman society.
The fact that Mastroianni is still constantly associated with the famous Trevi fountain scene and this film in general, leads to the conclusion that Mastroianni is the key figure in the plot and has been able to turn the film’s structure to his hand. The structure of the film, based on a week of the life of Marcello, seems to be a casual web of anecdotes and story fragmentation. This structure devalues the coherence in the narrative and obstructs the audiences from keeping their attention to the constant demobilized short stories and long duration of the film of three hours. Some scenes, like the returning static situated conversations between Mastroianni and others, slow down the overall rhythm of the film. Other scenes, as the closing scene and Trevi fountain scene, with Mastroianni’s small and excellent emotional play, are enforced by the power of Mastroianni’s
merits as an actor and lift the film to a higher attentional level. Where Mastroianni convinces the audiences by connecting the fragments by his attention-drawing play, his is supported by the astonishing use of light and music as directed by Fellini. Mastroianni fits the romantic scenery of Rome as a suit and manages to connect the slow scenes with the excellent play in the highly emotional scenes.
2.2. Biography and filmography of Marcello Mastroianni
With the analysis of Mastroianni’s person I should also include a short account of his biography and filmography. Both factors are indissolubly connected to the process of the becoming of an international star, as it could reveal patterns and key points of this interesting course in an actor’s life.
Mastroianni was born in 1924 in a small town called Fontana Liri, but Marcello’s family soon moved to Rome. Marcello started working in an Italian film department, “Eagle Lion Films” and joined a drama club, where he soon would be discovered as an actor by director Luchino Visconti. He played in Le Notti Blanche (1957) and I soliti ignoti (1958), but his breakthrough was yet to come with La Dolce Vita in 1960. Later he has worked with Fellini in some more successful films like Otto e mezzo in 1963, but also in La Notte (1961) of director Michelangelo Antonioni. He has been nominated for three Oscars (IMDB), which is a great achievement for an actor in a foreign film industry. He will always be remembered as ‘the’ Marcello of La Dolce Vita, the film that started his international breakthrough.
It stands out that Mastroianni has offered long-term collaborations with some of the greatest Italian directors of that time era, like Visconti, but foremost with Fellini. The relation between Mastroianni and Fellini was strong and Fellini even suggested to have found his alter ego in Mastroianni. But first, Fellini had no idea of the talent of Mastroianni when during the making of La Dolce Vita, as is suggested in a book dedicated to the director, Federico Fellini: His Life and Work: “He [De
Laurentiis, other director and writer] wants Fellini to use Paul Newman, who has said he’s available, but Federico is in love with the idea of casting Marcello Mastroianni. He doesn’t know him well, but he asks him to come by and, after they talk, Fellini can’t imagine anybody but
Mastroianni in the part.” (Kezich 197). It turned out that casting Mastroianni was a very good decision for both director and actor.
A welcome overview of Mastroianni’s filmic history and his life is provided by Jaqueline Reich in her publication Beyond the Latin Lover: Marcello Mastroianni, Masculinity, and Italian Cinema of 2004. Reich has done some great research of Mastroianni’s film characters, his life and his status as the “Latin lover”, a label for his style and looks. This publication is about the rise of the film star and the cultural context in which he became famous. She dedicated this work to the Italian film star as an exemplifying tool to highlight the Italian masculine film stars, Italian film culture and national cinema.
In a section about his stardom she argues that all the representations and categorizations of the phenomenon star, like Dyer suggested, could be applied on Mastroianni, “despite the fact that Mastroianni did not make a film in Hollywood until the very end of his long career. His multiple appearances on both the screen and the international stage made him the most recognized international actor of his time.” (Reich 17). The long-term absence of Hollywood films in his filmography could be explained by the fact that, as Reich suggests: “The reception of stars by the film-going public plays a crucial role in both their circulation and interpretation in Italy, where star-worshiping (divismo) is an important phenomenon.” (18). Mastroianni was growing into the Italian film history himself, as he was an important part of the key broadcasted films and the face of Italian film culture. Also, the national status and organization of Italy in certain time-eras is explained by Reich as a factor that created his star status: “Because Mastroianni’s career
spanned fifty years, various historical events […] are important keys to his films, and they impact not only the interpretation of his star persona but also its construction.” (22). Referring to the changing and developing Italian film industries in this time era and Mastroianni’s contribution to it she writes: “Italian cinema’s constant interchange with the historical condition produced films which overtly and covertly addressed changing roles for the men in the second half of the
twentieth century. Mastroianni, as Italy’s most renowned star on a national and international level, sold a certain image of life, Italian style, epitomized in La Dolce Vita.” (22). The men that Reich
mentions are the two kinds of Italian male symbols; that of Latin Lover and that of inetto, or “the particularly Italian incarnation of the schlemiel or anti-hero” (1), a label that is regularly applied to Mastroianni and constructs him as a womanizer and lover but also as a less masculine man. It turns out that this epitomized image is to be found in his earlier roles as well. The masculine womanizer character he plays in La Dolce Vita does not convince me that this was his ‘ideal’ character he would like to be associated with. Since he has chosen to play characters like
antiheroes and non-sexual men, Mastroianni was an actor that would apply his ‘image’ to several character roles, exploring his characteristic looks and talent. Further exploration of the filmography and character roles brings a certain pattern of his style and signature look.
In Le Notti Bianchi of 1957 Mastroianni plays a big role in a romantic film. The plot is simple: Mario (Marcello Mastroianni) meets the girl Natalia (played by Maria Schell) in Venice and tries to convince her to fall in love with him. Natalia is still waiting for her lover, who has not returned to the city. Mario falls hopelessly in love with her. We see him impeccably dressed in his suit with a somewhat younger and fresh face, however this film was made only four years before La Dolce Vita. The younger and more energetic face of Mastroianni is best seen in the scene in which he tries to impress Natalia by performing a dance in a bar. Suddenly he breaks up this image of the calm Mario and performs a comic dance. By doing this, the character of Mario shifts between a variety of emotions with the enclosed actions, so he remains enchanting and interesting to be watched throughout the film.
His signature movements, the poetic dialogues and his typical way of observing people and the scenery around him are seen here as well. Mastroianni positions himself in a character that is sensitive and vulnerable. In the short time of the film his emotions turn to anger- frustrated about the fact that Natalia doesn’t love him back - to sadness by the situation and back to sweet and romantic as he finally seems to convince Natalia. In this classic romantic atmosphere, enforced by the effort of attractive lightning and studio techniques, next to the dramatic character of Natalia the character of Mastroianni remains surprising in how he follows the woman as a faithful friend, despite the fact that, in the end, she chooses the other man. In all his sensitiveness he wins the
attention of the viewer by not only behaving as a masculine Latin lover, but also as an approachable endearing man.
This style of acting that is certainly repeated in La Dolce Vita, but some differences are seen as well. In Le Notti Bianchi Mastroianni’s character did excel in this love triangle but did not fully manage to be conspicuous with the space and narrative of the film by its small form and the low tension in the narrative. In La Dolce Vita Mastroianni bears the epos of Rome and the Roman citizen as if the plot was written personally for him – La Dolce Vita becomes a life story, and not only that of the Marcello character, but also of Mastroianni himself. In the way he fully possesses the power to lead the story he becomes the eye catcher of the film. Certainly, the chemistry between him and Anita Ekberg in La Dolce Vita is another factor that provided this power. Next to the Sylvia character Mastroianni’s qualities unfold easily as a strong character in the tempting scenes they share. The greatest difference between Mastroianni’s character in Le Notte Bianchi and La Dolce Vita is how the male protagonist is constructed in terms of cultural conventions of masculinity; for this case subdivided in the ‘extra-masculine man’ (the macho) and the ‘feminized man’ (the softer, less masculine man). Of course, these categories suggest an oversimplified definition by a strict division; as I have concluded earlier, Mastroianni’s character is constructed out of both categories in most of his films. However, when I am looking for patterns in how Mastorianni’s character is constructed throughout his filmic career and how this development is visible in his acting style, I first will need to highlight some differences. Le Notti Bianchi offers a more female perspective on the male-female relationship together with a more submissive male part. This is best seen in the scenes where Mario is repeatedly chasing Natalia in an attempt to seduce here. Despite the fact that Natalia is a non-dominant and hyper-feminine character – she is mostly shy, hysterically laughing at multiple situations, playing in a somewhat ‘dumb’ and girly style- this feminine power tempers the macho behavior of the Mario character. His character depicts the film’s structure which is based upon the construct of men and women in a love-triangle: the classic romantic filmic cliché of the unanswered love of a second man in the life of a
women. Here it is in Natalie’s power to decide which men deserves here love, confronting the Mario character with her struggle.
On the other hand, in La Dolce Vita the film’s structure leads a masculine perspective on how women behave as they are confronted with a successful and dominant kind of man. In La Dolce Vita, most of the occurring women are portrayed as hysterical and unpredictable: like Marcello’s wife, who starts yelling at him multiple times and is openly doubting their complex relationship, but later on she accepts his apologies and still fancies him. If not, they are portrayed as sex-objects. A great difference between his female opponent Maria Schell in Le Notti Bianchi and Anita Ekberg is that the latter is highly aware of her sexual powers and does not hesitate to show them. In terms of charisma, Anita Ekberg definitely convinces the viewer of her sexual female powers. Seen through the eye of Marcello, she repeatedly seduces the men around here with her body language and exotic Swedish looks. In a scene where the paparazzi is interviewing Sylvia, while she is lying on a sofa and making jokes, she is definitely ‘one of the boys’. The masculinity of Marcello, and how it developed in time is already analyzed in Jaqueline Reich’s contribution to Mastroianni’s filmic career. In the chapter “Stars, Gender and Nation: Marcello Mastroianni and Italian Masculinity” Reich questions what Italian masculinity is about and connects this with the Italian lifestyle outside of the film industries. In daily life, all men are bella figura and aware of their likableness, exotic looks and appearances in public and private sphere. She concludes: “The Italian man is ‘good at being a man’ precisely because he masks the inetto through the
performative aspects of the bella figura.” (52). This is best seen in Mastroianni’s acting style in La Dolce Vita . Thus, as a proof for the development to this feminized masculinity concept throughout the Italian films Mastroianni has played in, I would suggest that Mastroianni himself personified this cultural concept and connected a film character with a socio-cultural determination of what a Mediterranean male-female relationship is about. The success of the consumption and
acceptation of (international) audiences of this Mediterranean illustration – even without the ‘perfect’ image of the stereotype Italian handsome and macho man- may lie in the
Sylvia-Mastroianni relationship and Sylvia-Mastroianni’s skills to join both feminized and masculine stereotypes of behavior and character.
After La Dolce Vita, in 1961, another successful film with Mastroianni was released: La Notte (Michelangelo Antonioni, 1961). His character Giovanni Pontano is an unhappy husband and also a womanizer. The story is about a young writer who has just released his new book. In the
opening scenes of La Notte we get to see Mastroianni visiting a friend with terminal illness in the hospital. His wife Lidia, played by Jeanne Moreau, distances herself throughout the film from Giovanni. Next to the unhappy wife and in this clearly unhappy marriage, Mastroianni’s character is more sober and humble in contrast to the playboy character he was next to the big star of Anita Ekberg in La Dolce Vita. It could be said that next to strong female actresses Mastroianni can adopt the tension and positive or negative energy between himself and the female protagonist: the sexual tension between Ekberg and Mastroianni in La Dolce Vita compared to the cold, non-loving relationship between Moreau and Mastorianni in La Notte. During the night and at the party for his book release Lidia flirts with Roberto, a rich and charming man. Mastroianni gets charmed by the daughter of the party host, played by Monica Vitti. Surrounded by the wealthy people that praise the young writer’s success, Mastroianni performs in a very modest way, with subtle facial
expressions that are not to be missed as signals of the face of an unhappy husband. He is almost awkwardly displaced in a celebrating sphere, but does he completely convince us here? Hardly, after we have seen the outgoing, macho and charismatic Marcello in La Dolce Vita this character is more mysterious . The two young and very beautiful male and female protagonists here act with more bodily expressions than determined wordily fights or outspoken dissatisfaction. The
suggestion of anxiety, loneliness, the search for attention for the other man and woman is only expressed in empty conversations about their marriage, unanswered questions and underlying personal dramas that are not directly presented here. This other face of Mastroianni’s acting style cannot be adopted by the audiences as an expression of his popularity as an exotic notable Italian male, but as the personification of his qualities as an stable and authentic actor.
In 1963 Mastroianni earns again the leading role in the great success film Otto e Mezzo (Federico Fellini, 1963) in which he plays a filmmaker, Guido Anselmi, who is recalling the memories of his life after the success of his best film. The director lacks inspiration in making a new film and translates his own (relational) struggles into the film plot. In this film, similar to La Dolce Vita, Marcello fails in his profession: here as a director, in La Dolce Vita as a journalist. Central to this film are, again, the women and the relational troubles of a double affair. Similar as in la Dolce Vita, a mistress and a wife alternately appear in his life. Despite the fact that he is unfaithful and needs his mistress, he still loves her. Again, life choices of a middle-aged men, the contemplations of life so far and un-inspirational seeking of a new story to write are the focus. Seeing Mastroianni in the film after his biggest role in La Dolce Vita makes me aware of the fact that he is now a star, and in comparison to his earlier work he now earned larger roles (as the protagonist) and played roles that were written on his type, his characterizations as an actor and on his qualities. This brings me back to the main question that is needed to be answered: why would the role in the character of La Dolce Vita have meant the crucial role of his life, the role that brought him international success – that made him the Italian Latin lover for the non-European audiences- although this was not this image, not this type? If he would be the precise reflection of the Italian male film star and if the international audiences would know him since the 1960 film, then why would he choose to play other characters after that, like other types with different characters and characterizations? It even turns out to be the opposite of his personality: from extra-masculine with all prejudices of the Italian man connected to them included, to the anti-masculine feminized man. There seem to be very different views on Italian masculinity, and this is Mastroianni’s representation of it, that we see reflected on the screen in his action roles. Mastroianni seems to be all perspectives on the film star at ones. The best factors I have found that can be related to his rising stardom are his lifetime commitment with famous and successful directors (like Fellini) that reinforced his career in combination with the use of typecasting, and the directors choice of his main parts based on the theory of the power of the two-faced Mediterranean cultural-based prejudices of the dominant masculine man and the feminized sensitive man.
2.3. La Dolce Vita (1960)
Why Mastroianni as an actor caught the attention of international audiences is discussed in diverse scientific articles with reference to either Mastroianni, his films or his life. Tullio Kezich explains it as a non-time committed cause – as Dyer has suggested, being the right person in the right timeframe surrounded by supporting socio-cultural factors is a trigger of upcoming stardom. In Federico Fellini: His Life and Work Kezich suggests:
La Dolce Vita is the “nocturnal diary” of a man living out the tension of attraction to and disgust with the world he lives in. He is an everyman in Mastroianni’s – which is entirely in keeping with Fellini’s intentions. Marcello has no real roots; he doesn’t have anything to prevent him from falling into perdition at any time –thus this scenery has an open character, is timeless and not bounded to any place, so this persona and story are very adoptable for any situation in any (European) nation, thus more liability. (203-204)
On the other hand, by analyzing La Dolce Vita I have discovered that the Marcello character is the ultimate Mediterranean / Italian male in all its facets. Marcello’s behavior is socially accepted, because for Italian viewers it is an ordinary account on how Italian men behave in public scenery – in this situation it is only an enlarged fictional representation of social life by the rich and famous in Rome. Since this conduct is often seen in Italian streets, no shock is given by it. I wonder whether other nationalities watching this film – especially non-Southern European countries- interpret this behavior and representation of it similar or are less willing to identify with this character. The openness of worldwide viewers for the adoption of characters of all nationalities and their society-bounded standards and cultural conventions is uncertain.
Chris Wiegand describes in Federico Fellini: The Complete Films how Mastroianni became Fellini’s alter ego on screen.By reading his book I asked myself how the (filmic) influence of director Fellini can explain what the transition from star to international star looks like, and how this star was rising. Most likely are the following factors: first, Fellini is a branding name and sells his films of the viewers by the success of his earlier products. By his strong reputation and noticed name he sells automatically his ‘signature actors’ – those who return in his films, especially in the
successful ones repeatedly - with it. As another factor related to the, the power of repetition and recognition is essential to create a star. In relation to La Dolce Vita Wiegand writes:
La Dolce Vita introduced Mastroianni and Ekberg to an international audience […] Although the film doesn’t mark the actor’s screen debut – he would appeared previously in Luchino Visconti’s 1957 classic Le notti blanche (White Nights) - it earned him considerable critical acclaim and public attention. In the years that followed La dolce vita’s release, he would become known as ‘Il Bel Marcello’ in Italy. With later films such as Divorzio all’italiana (Divorce – Italian style, 1961) Mastroianni became Italy’s most internationally famous actor. (79)
Some articles suggest that Mastroianni’s fame is a direct result of his charming looks and
signature clothing style. In La Dolce Vita and in many other of his films Mastroianni looks likes the Latin lover Reich has been writing about (see earlier in this chapter). Referring to Mastroianni and the film, she wrote the chapter “Undressing the Latin Lover: Marcello Mastroianni, fashion, and La Dolce Vita” in Fashion Cultures. In this essay she takes a closer look at the physical appearance of the protagonist. On account of the Latin Lover character of Marcello in La Dolce Vita she concludes the following: “The Latin Lover is above all a product, a consumer icon, a cultural commodity offered up for the consumption to an international public. Mastroianni was a symbol for Italian style, for a style of life that resonated with a national public experiencing greater prosperity after years of struggle and with an international consumer market hungry for all things Italian.” (209-210). This symbolization is visible in the way Mastroianni is dressed: it gives us a simple hint of his Latin lover status: “In the film, Fellini dresses up the journalist Marcello Rubini, as played by Mastroianni, in the latest Italian fashion but ultimately strips him bare to reveal a man at odds rather than triumphant over a rapidly changing economic, social, and sexual environment.” (210). The film simply breaths Italian style, and there was no doubt that Mastroianni’s appearance contributed to the international success for both film and actor.
Later on in the film the macho characteristics of the Italian man are overshadowed by another characteristic of the Marcello figure. He takes on a protective role taking care of Ekberg, who is
