The Movie

There is a moment in life during which the boundary between childhood and adulthood becomes blurred; an emotional overlap in which the insecurities and indecisions of youth merge with the responsibility and grayscale cynicism that inevitably arrive after one turns eighteen. It's that mix of fear, excitement, and the epic clash between wide-eyed innocence and hardcore reality that makes this tumultuous era ripe for exploration. Representations of this time are often referred to as "coming-of-age" stories, a term which once radiated depth and tenderness but lately seems to have been hijacked by insipid "teen comedies" (in which all of life's mysteries inevitably get solved by the evening of the prom or during some quizzical and mathematically-improbably yet delightfully wacky European spy caper.)

Thankfully such is not the case with Il Posto, director Ermanno Olmi's semi-autobiographical feature film debut. Hearkening back to an earlier Italian neorealist movement, Il Posto is a lovely film, a gentle and beautiful slice-of-life that poignantly exposes the inane, hopeless, and dehumanizing nature of the corporate workplace while at the same time revealing the joy and simple pleasures that can be found outside life's drudgeries. A fiercely humanistic tale, Il Posto details the story of Domenico, a young man who travels from his small village to Milan in order to apply for a government job that, hopefully, will set him up for life.

Il Posto generates simple humor and evokes basic truths through its scrutiny of Domenico's travails, including a puzzling employment examination calls for a 40-minute math problem (one that would take any half-educated individual less than a minute to complete), a bizarre series of deep knee bends and calisthenics, and a barrage of psychological questions that border on the inane. During the exam, Domenico meets a lovely young lady named Antonietta, whose pretty visage and sweet nature makes Domenico's entrance into the world of adulthood seem slightly less arduous. But when they end up working in separate buildings and he spies her happily in the company of her male co-workers, any kind of joy that can be derived from such loveless work seems spurious at best.

One's first job in the adult workplace is usually their most miserable -- this particular reviewer recoils in horror when remembering a certain part-time stint as a telemarketer for a mortuary. Il Posto excels in its depiction of loneliness and desperation while still finding moments of joy, wonder, and sweet reflection in life's most trying moments. The film takes a few unconventional turns in the middle as the point-of-view shifts from Domenico to some of the company's adult workers, and the film slightly suffers for it. Nonetheless, Il Posto is brilliant in its depiction of the entrance into adulthood as well as the routine blandness and general drudgery that comes part and parcel with corporate enslavement. It's a stunningly beautiful film which, like the haunting look in Domenico's eyes that end the film, lingers with you long after the final credits have ended.

The DVD

Video:
Absolutely stunning. Criterion has performed an extensive restoration on the film, and the results are nothing less than impressive. Starting with the film's original camera negative and recording the transfer in high definition, the restoration removed extensive scratches, chemical stains, and debris, resulting in an extremely clean and vibrant image. The video is presented in its original full-frame aspect ratio of 1.37:1. The black-and-white film shows barely a fraction of its original damage. Image detail is generally sharp, although a few scenes display occasional softness which seems to have been an intentional aesthetic decision. Contrasts levels are sharp and spot-on, with a fantastic range of deep blacks and bright whites. Thankfully I failed to notice any compression noise, haloing, or pixellation, resulting in a remarkably smooth and vivid transfer.

Audio:
The audio is presented in its original Dolby Digital mono. The one-channel audio is serviceable and presents an adequate representation of the film's soundtrack. If there is a thinness, clipping, or slight harshness in the dialog at times, this is easily attributed to the film's age. Overall Il Posto is acceptably served by the DVDs audio presentation.

Extras:
Starting things off is a four-minute Deleted Scene, in which Domenico follows Antonietta as she leaves work under the umbrella of a male co-worker. According to the DVD, Olmi cut the scene as he felt it unnecessarily lengthened the film. While I agree with this assessment, it is nonetheless an interesting addition.

Reflecting Reality: Making Il Posto is a nineteen-minute interview which features director Ermanno Olmi and film critic/historian Tullio Kezich. Throughout the interview Kezich takes a more historical approach, discussing Olmi's biographical and filmographical history, while Olmi offers his personal thoughts on his life and career, especially as they pertain to the creation of Il Posto. Olmi's recollections are especially poignant as he details how much of his own life details and experiences went into the making of the film. This is a wonderful interview, one which I wish could have continued longer than its nineteen minute allotment (thankfully, this style of interview continues on I Fidanzati, another Olmi film released on DVD by Criterion.)

La Cotta is a movie which Olmi shot for Italian television in 1967. Running slightly over forty-nine minutes in length, the movie is a charming and stylish depiction of a boy's descent into first love. The movie is also indicative of the shift in narrative style that would dominate much of Olmi's later films.

A magnificent Restoration Demonstration has been included which goes into great detail discussing how much work went into restoring Il Posto for the 2002 Cannes Film Festival. Running over four minutes, this addition is a definite must-see for those who are curious about the lengths Criterion went to develop the DVDs magnificent transfer.

Rounding out the extras is the film's three minute Theatrical Trailer. Like so many great trailers of its ilk, the trailer shows you many wonderful things but tells you very little in an enticing preview of the film.

Final Thoughts

Il Posto served as my introduction to Ermanno Olmi's work, and I was simply blown away by the movie. It offered no grand solutions or profound insights into any of life's mysteries, but rather explored with simple yet grand conviction the small slices of life that resonate with truth and universality. Il Posto is a grand and touching film, one which is beautifully presented in a vibrant transfer (thanks to Criterion's magnificent restoration) and enhanced by an array of wonderful supplements. Film lovers everywhere should ready a place for this DVD in their collection, as it comes with a very strong recommendation.