gavin6942
Tullio Hermil (Giancarlo Giannini) is a chauvinist aristocrat who flaunts his mistress (Jennifer O'Neill) to his wife (Laura Antonelli), but when he believes she has been unfaithful he becomes enamored of her again.This movie is notable for being the last film made by Italian director Luchino Visconti, perhaps best known for "The Leopard". This time around he has really brought himself up to the 1970s and is not shy with the sensuality. Even the film's promo art seems to highlight the nudity, which is odd.What strikes me about the movie is the casting of Jennifer O'Neill. I suspect that it was largely due to her look. She was a weak actress in "Rio Lobo", but seems to recover here (helped by the dubbing). She would go on to appear in "Scanners"... anyone who has worked with Visconti, Hawks and Cronenberg deserves some respect.
MartinHafer
"L'Innocente" is a pretty film to watch. This can be said for just about all the films of Luchino Visconti that I have seen. He really knew how to make a quality film--great sets, lovely costumes and nice cinematography. However, I will also say that I hardly ever have enjoyed a Visconti film (with the exception of "Rocco and His Brothers" and perhaps one or two others). While they look great, they also move at a glacial place and feature characters I really couldn't care less for...and this makes for very slow viewing. Artsy folks and critics LOVE films like "The Leopard", "The Damned" and "Death in Venice", I just found them to be overlong and curiously uninvolving.I could say all this about Visconti's final film, "L'Innocente"-- a film that once again looks great but also have no one in the film that you care one bit about as well as glacial pacing. Even the sight of an incredibly beautiful naked woman in some incredibly graphic scenes weren't enough to make the film interesting-- something that is VERY difficult to achieve. I could talk about the story, but frankly it COULD have been interesting...but wasn't. My only thrill came at the end when one of the characters killed themselves...at least then I knew it was finally complete!
denappel
love often used misspelled abused love taken for a selfish game manipulating shamehe loved himself apart from that a selfish search for someone to confirm he is what he only pretends to bewas she crazy or insane was her love so true she bared the pain for her it was no game and yet she lost...beautiful movie, timeless! delightfull to see how this movie takes his time to tell a story, the script is strong, the music emotional, the actors impressive, I can only write down positive aspects, thanks to visconti's perfectionism and talent this movie became more than a traditional story about love and hate. the thin line between the beauty of the movie and the manipulating selfish desire of the story creates a strong emotional masterpiece that will no one left untouched
gridoon
After this film is over, you'll probably feel that you've just seen a quality movie for serious movie-goers. But while you're watching it, you may find yourself thinking than it needed a shot of adrenalin. It's an elegant and insightful drama, but very languidly paced. Apparently, everybody involved with it tried to give the (rather soapy) material more weight than it could hold, so almost everything - direction, acting, dialogue rhythms - seems kind of overdeliberate. Great last shot, though. (**1/2)