White Nights
Director: Luchino Visconti
Year Released: 1957
Rating: 2.0
Marcello finds a weeping woman on a bridge and is determined to win her over, but the woman never stops weeping or appears to be able to be won over because she's convinced an old lover (Jean Marais) is coming back for her. I never expected Dostoyevsky of all folks to be this romantic-minded, but the writings this was based on were from the 27-year-old Fyodor when he probably believed in love at first sight and all those other gushy things (I am just speculating, of course) - the grim Russian I know and appreciate comes back into town with a most unhappy (but most probable) ending. It's entirely too melodramatic for my tastes, and there never seems to be any chemistry between the two principal leads, but the sets are wonderfully lit and the picture moves smoothly.
