There's something magical and timeless about the movies. The stars that inhabit them are like fixed points in a firmament created out of the imagination; ageless reminders that despite the fact that our bodies deteriorate during the passage of time, in our minds we are forever young. Images projected across the distance and onto a screen like ghosts from far off memories have the ability to take us back through time like bookmarkers for important events in our lives. Giuseppe Tornatore's glorification of the movies in CINEMA PARADISO is really a celebration of life and the limitless possibilities for the individual with determination and imagination. There are really three protagonists in this film; Salvatore, the principle character who's story is told primarily through flashbacks; father figure persona grata, Alfredo, projectionist and Salvatore's mentor; and the theater itself, Cinema Paradiso, that refuge for the weary. A place where dreams, if only for a couple hours, can be found. A place where, laughter, sadness and joy can be shared. Paradise! Salvatore is fatherless and Alfredo childless. The two will form a special bond and remain virtually inseparable until Salvatore is a young man. A bond forged primarily in the projection room of the Cinema Paradiso, and fired by their mutual love for the movies. The years will be marked with tragedy, love won and lost and the realization that perhaps "life isn't like in the movies." Alfredo, having lived most of his life through the movies, encourages Salvatore not to make the same mistake, urging him to "Get out of Dodge" and direct his own destiny. "I don't want to hear you talk anymore. I want to hear others talk of you. Don't come back. Don't give into nostalgia." When Salvatore finally does leave, making it big as a successful and respected filmmaker, it will take the death of Alfredo to bring him back after an absence of 30 years. A trip back in time that will inflame old wounds, but also provide an opportunity for them to heal, and after the final kiss of CINEMA PARADISO's inspirational last scene, any lover of the movies will find it almost impossible not to give into nostalgia.
Review of Cinema Paradiso
