The Way We Laughed

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=80 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF" bgproperties="fixed" background="04000500dvldtc.png"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Arial" ><B>Reel Movie Critic.com</B></FONT><B>     |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Reel Movie Critic.com"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id1827.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Undercover Brother"><U>Undercover Brother</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1825.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Undisputed"><U>Undisputed</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1838.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Undisputed"><U>Undisputed</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1798.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Van Wilder"><U>Van Wilder</U></A>   |   <B>The Way We Laughed</B>   |   <A HREF="id1768.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="We Were Soldiers"><U>We Were Soldiers</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1795.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="What Time is it There?"><U>What Time is it There?</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1826.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="What to do in case of Fire"><U>What to do in case of Fire</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1733.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Windtalkers"><U>Windtalkers</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1824.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="XXX"><U>XXX</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1737.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Y Tu Mama Tambien"><U>Y Tu Mama Tambien</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1942.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Its My Life"><U>It's My Life</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id1943.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Juwanna Man"><U>Juwanna Man</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="041d2c00dvldtc.png"> <div> <B>Home Pages for</B></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/index.htm"><U><B>Movies</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>      </B><A HREF="http://www.newbookdiscounts.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.newbookdiscounts.com/"><U><B>Books</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>            </B><A HREF="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/travelforless/id364.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/travelfor"><U><B>Travel</B></U></A></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>                   </B><A HREF="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/travelforless/id361.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.reelmoviecritic.com/travelfor"><U><B>Great Web Sites</B></U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" height=400 BGCOLOR="#000000" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> The Way We Laughed</div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="501" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="495"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="495" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="596" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 ><NOBR><div> <B>The Way We Laughed (Cosi ridevano) </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFCC66" FACE="Wingdings 2" ><B>êêê</B></FONT> ( Not Rated) </div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="592"><div> Reviewed By Cathy Edsey Collins</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="592"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="592" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="592"><div> <B>A tale of brotherly deception</B></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="580" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="269"><div> Pietro: Francesco Giuffrida</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="304"><div> Giovanni: Enrico LoVerso</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Director/Writer: Gianni Amelio</div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> Cinematography: Luca Bigazzi</div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="269"><div> 1998/ 128 minutes</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="304"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="304" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <B>30 Second Bottom Line</B>: Two brothers leave their rural home in Sicily in search of a better life in the unwelcoming metropolis of Turin. Giovanni, the older, unschooled sibling, toils selflessly to provide an education for the sullen Pietro, who fritters away his classes and ultimately breaks his brother's heart by disappearing. When Pietro strolls back into his brother's life, however, the now street-savvy Giovanni turns the tables.   </div> <bR> <div> <B>Story Line:</B> Divided into six chapters that each represent a year from 1958 to 1964-"Arrivals," "Betrayals," "Money," "Letters," "Blood" and "Families"-this moving saga begins with an infectious innocence and concludes with a worldly cynicism that is heart-breaking.</div> <bR> <div> When Giovanni arrives in Turin's crowded train station, his joy is palpable. He cannot wait to be reunited with his younger brother Pietro who has been studying and rooming with relatives. Exceedingly proud of Pietro, Giovanni brags to strangers about the brother who is to meet him, the cultured future teacher, unaware that his younger brother is hiding behind a pole, unwilling to greet him.</div> <bR> <div> As the story unfolds, it becomes apparent that Pietro is a deceptive schemer, skipping lessons and doing poorly in class. Ironically, he pays a janitor to pose as his instructor for Parents' Day, not knowing that Giovanni is sending a dance instructor in his place because he is ashamed of his illiteracy. Pietro's motives are as nasty as he is selfish; Giovanni's motivation stems from a naïve love that will do anything not to embarrass his brother. His gentle lectures on the importance of education fall on Pietro's deaf ears and when-for unclear reasons-Pietro disappears, it seems that Giovanni will never recover. Clutching Pietro's schoolbooks as he combs the streets, Giovanni's appearance is alarming. Gaunt and disheveled, his reason for living has dissipated with his ungrateful brother's abrupt departure.</div> <bR> <div> Time passes and with the film's final chapters, it becomes obvious that Giovanni has amassed power and success, though their origins seem unsavory. The bittersweet return of Pietro turns deadly when Giovanni knifes a rival and in a hazy conclusion, it appears that Pietro has taken the fall for the murder. And in sharp contrast to the earlier Giovanni whose eyes brimmed with tears at the thought of seeing his promising younger brother, the Giovanni at the film's conclusion is an unforgiving soul who has sold his own to escape poverty and embrace the good life. His ultimate deception proves even grander than Pietro's boyish deceits to skip school.</div> <div>     </div> <div> <B>Tell Me More About It</B>: Winner of the Golden Lion Award at the 1998 Venice Film Festival, <I><B>The Way We Laughed</B></I> radiates with the melancholy of a soured relationship. Giovanni will do anything, will work any horrid job to provide money for Pietro's education. LoVerso's magnetic face shows, with incredible clarity, the unconditional love this </div> <bR> <bR> <div> brother has for his sibling. It is so pure, so self-sacrificing that Pietro's deceptions become all the more hateful. And although Pietro's fate appears unfair, the film has led us to despise the ungrateful brat and feel he almost deserves to be imprisoned.</div> <bR> <div> Filmed amidst black and brown hues, director Amelio has stripped away anything that could distract from his characters. This absence of color forces the focus to fall directly on Pietro and Giovanni's expressive faces. This unique style earned cinematographer Luca Bigazzi a Golden Osella Award at Venice as well.</div> <bR> <div> The appeal of this film rests on its ambiguity. Long after the film's conclusion, questions remain and the haunting faces of Pietro and Giovanni keep reappearing. Exactly why did Pietro neglect his studies? What made him abandon his devoted brother? How did Giovanni acquire his fortune? Who was that victim of the knifing?</div> <bR> <div> The chapters of the story merely hint at these details, offering limited moments in each year, tantalizing the viewer with the endless explanations that are left unsaid.   </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="621" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> Cathy Edsey Collins © 2002</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="617"><div> <A HREF="mailto:cathyedsey@aol.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:cathyedsey@aol.com"><U><U>Cathyedsey@aol.com</U></U></A></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> Mini Filmography </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="694" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 ><NOBR><div> Francesco Guiffrida: "<I><B>The Golden Bowl"</B></I></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> Enrico LoVersa: "Lamerica", "<I><B>Hannibal",</B></I></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="365"><div> Director Gianni Amelio: "Lamerica"</div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="322"><div> "Les Miserables"(TV version)</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>