La Notte (1961)

 ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

La Notte (1961) – M. Antonioni

The second in Antonioni’s trilogy (or tetralogy) about alienation in the modern world (alienation from self, alienation from others, alienation from nature, alienation from moral purpose). I find this the most difficult and least enjoyable of the four, perhaps because both Jeanne Moreau and Marcello Mastroianni play such sombre, unhappy characters – mere reflections of who they should be (echoed by Antonioni’s frequent decision to place them in front of glass-walled modern buildings). He is a writer who has just released a novel that is achieving modest success but he wonders aloud about whether writers are needed anymore. Up until now, she has supported them both with family money but it is clear that this has come at some cost. As the film opens, they visit a dying friend in the hospital – she feels the impact more strongly (we learn later that this friend once courted her) and she escapes to wander the streets of Milan looking for…herself. Upon her return, she tries to re-awaken her love for Giovanni (Mastroianni) by going on a date to a nightclub but his passivity leads her to suggest that they attend a party instead -- where he seeks to fill his emptiness by impetuously pursuing Monica Vitti and she herself is pursued by another suitor. They are at a crossroads (or perhaps more than one). The whole film occurs across the space of 24 hours (the party runs until the wee hours) but we are made to feel the full weight of time on their relationship.