billsoccer This is a movie about a man fantasizing about a young boy. Nothing more, though woven around sights of one of the most romantic cities in the world. I see no redeeming value in this semi-autobiographical story by Thomas Mann. I can't imagine there was any other reason to write/film it than to increase sympathy for men with these feelings. Pure propaganda, unadorned by any exploration of internal thought process, which might have served to explain his (seeming) struggle. If you want to see an entertaining movie about homosexuals, check out Capote. This is simply about a mans fascination with a good-looking youth. Risking people thinking I'm being homophobic, I just can't understand the rave reviews, or even the good reviews that ignore the central tenet of the movie. I should say only tenet - there's utterly no plot and little dialog. I'd be more upset if the movie wasn't so awful boring. Btw - the 3 stars were entirely due to the shots of Venice!

Boyd Rarely has so much misplaced self important nonsense slowly drivelled down the screen, like poisoned honey ... I is a fitting inditement of overmoney'd trash sinking in ignorance and determined inability to interact with the real world, though it is supposed to be the opposite... A huge misfire that can hardly be seen as a comedy on decadent cinema ... Don't misunderstand me ... I'm not heavy left winger ... But Visconti was an aristocrat that had enormous backing, and made some good films, but was never a particularly great director... In the end it all hung on the budget ... And this is the epitome of that sort of film of the time ... The Italians had the best film making talent in the world at that time and made some of the best, most inventive and entertaining cinema ... But this stagnant epic of self indulgence isn't one of them ... Having said that, Bogarde is perfect in his role and the whole cast is very good

gavin6942 In this adaptation of the Thomas Mann novel, avant-garde composer Gustave Aschenbach (loosely based on Gustav Mahler) travels to a Venetian seaside resort in search of repose after a period of artistic and personal stress. But he finds no peace there, for he soon develops a troubling attraction to an adolescent boy, Tadzio, on vacation with his family.What strikes me about this film is the odd coloration. Some have said it makes the film look like a moving painting. I can see that, but I also think it looks muted. A step up from Technicolor, but a far cry from other methods. I wish I knew more about cinematography so I could express the thought more clearly.There is a bit of a scandalous subplot, as it suggests pedophilia or something similar. Strange how many films (or books) have heroes (or protagonists) afflicted with this. What are we to make of them? Are they evil or just flawed? The cholera epidemic plays a major part in the story, and it is interesting that the film seems to be known less for that than the "romance" angle. Not many films have cholera in them, which seems odd considering its deadliness. Everyone in old movies seems to die from tuberculosis!

Glenn William An otherwise great cinema experience is severely hampered by imbecilic direction by Visconti. Not one scene can pass without a zoom-in. There is no reason, no allusion to a greater context or subtext. This is not a facet of everyday vision. People don't race up to other people to hold an observation or a conversation, then race back to their marks again. We do not yet possess telescopic zoom for our eyes. Outside of a sniper's technical demonstration guide the zoom has little place in ornate Venice. When the zoom isn't abruptly jolting your immersion away from lavish sets and beautiful music there contends a creaky slow wobbly pan and camera trundle, reminding you of an arthritic geriatric attempting to move a hundred ton piece of equipment. At one point in the motel the camera was steady - a minor miracle, no idiotic zoom yet - only to attempt a pan right ... It went left accidentally towards a wall then corrected immediately to follow the actor. It is misery. Read the book, listen to Mahler and watch a youtube history piece on Venetian architecture.