Journey to Italy

1954 drama

Rating: 16/20

Plot: A married couple visit Italy.

There's no time to read about the ending of Roberto Rossellini's anti-romantic drama and sightseeing tour of Naples, Italy, and I'm not sure what to think of it. I didn't like it, but it didn't sour me on the rest of the film, one of those that ties its setting to its drama so perfectly. The symbolism of the places Bergman's character visits is a bit on the nose, but they're cool to see and well filmed. The part in Pompeii is especially poignant though I would rather watch the Coogan/Brydon Trip to Italy again before watching this. It's got more impressions and sing-a-longs, and it doesn't force you to watch the disintegration of a marriage, something that's a little depressing.

You could argue that the disintegrating marriage is the main character in Voyage to Italy, but I do like how both of the characters are created. Their conflicts have begun a long time before we see them riding in a car at the beginning of this, that disintegration en media res, and it's entirely unclear what happens after the credits roll. Their differences are clearly defined by Bergman and Sanders desiring different things at this stage in their relationship. Bergman's character's fueled by some inner anguish, and there's a lot of subtlety to her performance. Sanders appears to be an actor tortured by this entire experience, and that adds some depth to his character here.

By the way, George Sanders' character mentions being bored a handful of times in this, and it's a little hard to watch that a few decades after he wrote a suicide note about being bored before taking his life.