A young woman (Monica Vitti) meets a vital young man (Alain Delon), but their love affair is doomed because of the man's materialistic nature.
Director Martin Scorsese described how the film haunted and inspired him as a young moviegoer, noting it seemed to him a "step forward in storytelling" and "felt less like a story and more like a poem." He adds that the ending is "a frightening way to end a film... but at the time it also felt liberating. The final seven minutes of L'Eclisse suggested to us that the possibilities in cinema were absolutely limitless." Scorsese is easily the most knowledgeable filmmaker out there (he would be the best critic, second to none, even Kael or Ebert). I must agree with him. While I'm not terribly familiar with Italian films of the 1960s (yet), there is something about this one that is quite beautiful.
Director Martin Scorsese described how the film haunted and inspired him as a young moviegoer, noting it seemed to him a "step forward in storytelling" and "felt less like a story and more like a poem." He adds that the ending is "a frightening way to end a film... but at the time it also felt liberating. The final seven minutes of L'Eclisse suggested to us that the possibilities in cinema were absolutely limitless." Scorsese is easily the most knowledgeable filmmaker out there (he would be the best critic, second to none, even Kael or Ebert). I must agree with him. While I'm not terribly familiar with Italian films of the 1960s (yet), there is something about this one that is quite beautiful.