‘Happy as Lazzaro’ – director Alice Rohrwacher
I first became acquainted with Italian director Alice Rohrwacher last fall of 2018 when I had the privilege of watching her inaugural impacting film, Corpo Celeste. It was without hesitation that, upon finding her third production offered by Netflix, I logged on for another imaginative and stimulating adventure. Happy as Lazzaro proved to be all that and more.
Quirky, stretching for the “senses”, surprising, maddening, confusing … this film taps the heart, spins the mind, and leaves one shot full of questions. The viewer is introduced to a unique hero – young Lazzaro – who is innocent, full of goodness, free from self-interest, and ever so eager to serve and bring pleasure to others. The setting for his selfless actions is a small backwards mountainous village in Italy that seems strangely out of step with time. Meeting the villagers and landlords only adds to the mystery. Conflict and change emerge resulting in a scenic shift to a nearby modern city. This shift includes leaving the warm colours of nature for the cold of steel and concrete, a dip into fairytale magical realism, and spiritual overtones.
Our hero remains with his friends, his life and words asking if change brings progress, if goodness and decency can prevail, if there can be a happily-ever-after? Beautifully constructed and creatively provocative, Happy as Lazzaro is worth an evening’s viewing.
I include a thoughtful review from The Ringer that helped with some of my questions.
‘”Happy as Lazzaro’ Isn’t Just One of Netflix’s Best Movies – It’s One of 2018’s Best. This platform on which this elegant Italian drama appears is at once at odds with—and hopefully supportive and nurturing of—its utterly distinctive and original artistic vision.”
Mary, Feb 2019
*Image posted for non commercial purposes under 'fair use' of copyright material in recommendation of the film
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Lazzaro is such a unique protagonist, a countercultural hero in an emerging “selfie” age, perhaps it’s safe to say, dripping with self-absorption. Maybe that’s a main point of this story?
I love Rohrwacher’s creative struggle with the coexistence of the past and the present in her country Italy. By not becoming political in her films and opinions, she is becoming a true bridge-builder, trying to hold things together!
Happy as Lazzaro currently available on 4oD in the UK