La Dolce Vita - A Review that Works

Roger Ebert’s review of Fellini’s La Dolce Vita is insightful and impactful. He perfectly encapsulates the energy of the film, the experiences and reactions that he has had viewing it, and the larger questions that Fellini has posed. Rather than butting up against the film, the review works with it, using it for a humble grasp at a universal idea or theme.

Ebert doesn’t break the film down piece-by-piece. In fact, he rejects the whole idea, not wanting to “reduce the movie to a crossword puzzle.” He analyzes by letting the film speak for itself. Simple, succinct descriptions of events are employed to give just enough for the reader to vividly recall scenes from the film. A kind of “ah-ha!” understanding is achieved through the way this previously known information is presented. Ebert gets at larger ideas by rearranging the film and describing it as he saw it.

His personal experiences with the film are also of note. He explains in the review that the film has meant something different to him each time he has seen it. This hits at the idea that art is constantly moving, and morphing to adapt to our experiences with it. Ebert sees La Dolce Vita as constantly flowing and changing, and alludes to this idea as applying universally to all art.

Through his descriptions of the film and his experiences, Ebert has given readers an artwork in and of itself. He paints a portrait of himself: a man in varying stages of life, reacting to a piece of art that’s important to him. We’ve all had similar experiences in our lives, and Ebert allows us to reflect on those experiences for ourselves.


Ebert's review can be found here.