Senso
Director: Luchino Visconti
Year Released: 1954
Rating: 1.0
Thoroughly, unabashedly dreadful "romantic" film from one of my favorite filmmakers - whose most flawed pictures have their own place in my heart (Ludwig, Death in Venice) - about a love affair between an Italian woman (Alida Valli) and an Austrian (Farley Granger) that was - you got it - never meant to be. Intentional melodrama and dazzling visuals bring to mind Antonioni's Red Desert, another picture I disliked tremendously. Valli whines and hyperventilates while flailing in front of the meticulous sets; Granger - out of the blue - turns into a madman and abuses her trust and love. I never bought their relationship for a second, and because of Visconti's detached staging, could care less.
