the sex scenes are a bit too numerous and absurd

Casanova depicted as a pathetic madman... with none other than Donald Sutherland, a man famous for playing creeps and villains, in the title role. Between this conceit and the sumptuous production design and great color cinematography, I believe this is my favorite Fellini

At first I was put off by the carnivalesque bacchanalia and the stupid bawdy sex comedy. The imagery is extremely impressive: grand fanciful sets, marvelous costumes, and gorgeous photography contributing to a series of wonderful images. But I could not stand the subject matter. But eventually the film quiets down a bit and finds some poignant moments. Occasionally it slips back into loud and stupid and grating, but for the most part the second half is much better than the first.

Fellini is very prone to indulgence, and if that annoys you, then a lot of this will be frustrating. Personally I'm a fan of the extravagant sets, the bawdy sex scenes, and the sheer depravity of everyone involved. It deliberately sets out to not portray Casanova as a dashing, charming man - instead he's a sniffy, lanky twig who actually cries at points. He's pathetic, really. This leads to an absurd contrast between his famed sexual exploits and the sheer wimpiness of his character.

Decadent, bizarre, and creative as only Fellini does it. The similarly-structured Satyricon left a bad taste in my mouth, but this has enough quiet moments to balance out the baroque madness (which is wonderful, anyway).

#523

it doesn't actually have a point, it's just donald sutherland having sex with a lot of people and being badly overdubbed in italian. so if that's your thing, than yeah, it's pretty good. if not it still manages to be one tally up on fellini's watchable list, it's a heck of a lot better than a couple that have been deemed classics.

"Often reminiscent of a Ken Russell biopic, Fellini's take on Casanova's life is grotesquely fantastical and over-the-top... Casanova is depicted as a pathetic, sensitive, insatiable, libertine man who is incapable of real love, a bizarre mechanical statue coming to life every time he has sex, and important highlights of his life are scattered throughout the movie."

"Il Casanova" is very much like its hero: eccentric and excessive but not much else. Casanova is never developed into anything more than a caricature -not Sutherland's fault, who turns in an enjoyably witty performance. The film does succeed however in sustaining the viewer's interest -similar to the hero's life, it resembles a series of superficial delights. Fellini's direction goes from amateurish (the sex scenes) to inspired, but he manages to keep the audience's interest constantly aroused.

# 356

Flawed and marvelously decadent telling of the life of Casanova, as seen through the eyes of someone that is, presumably, high as a kite. Still, it manages the feat of never being boring and at 2½ hours that's pretty impressive in itself.

Clock Work Casanova.

Sadly underrated, Casanova is really a subtler, more focused film than many of his disproportionately adored earlier works. Also, Donald Sutherland is absolutely brilliant here.

477

442

"Lavishly dressed and backed by a divine score, but under-acted and poorly thought-out."