From the time I first saw this film in East Berlin in the 1970's with my lover, Lutz, till now-the magic of this film never fades. It is a dream, a mood , a beautiful image. Dirk Bogarde is well suited as the repressed artist Aschenbach who visits Venice and finds ideal beauty in the young boy, Tadzio. Luchino Visconti took Thomas Mann's famous novel and brought it to life. Silvana Mangano is more enchanting than ever as the boy's mother. The haunting musical score of Gustav Mahler is a feast. This film is a superb delight. To those who complain that it is slow moving, I feel that it is a film to be enjoyed in that way. One can only praise such a beautiful work of art in Italian film and shudder at the vile crap being produced by Hollywood.
Review of Death in Venice
