University of Virginia Library

CINEMA

'Clowns': Floating Into The Past

By PAUL CHAPLIN

Federico Fellini's films of
late have consisted of bits and
pieces of ideas not blended
into a harmonious concept for
a film. "Juliet of the Spirits"
was marred by its amateurish
attempts at psychology, and
the various elements of the
plot which made the film seem
to bulge at the seams.
"Satyricon" suffered from
having no plot and an
outlandish display of opulent
degeneracy.

"The Clowns" may reassure
some that Fellini may make
another great film like his
previous "8 1/2" or "La Dolce
Vita." This new film is a
quasi-documentary about great
clown performers and Fellini
attempting to make a film.
From the opening shot of the
film, a boy watching a circus
tent rising from the earth like a
natural appendage, we
alternately float from the past
to the present.

Fellini tells us that the
clowns of his childhood
frightened him. "Those chalky
faces and enigmatic
expressions" reminded him of
people he knew in real life.
These "clowns" are the more
familiar Fellini grotesques,
somewhat frightening, but in
this film they are pathetic and
almost tragic.

Fellini decides to make a
film recording the lives of the
great European clowns, and
introduces us to his crew as

they leave for the Nardino
Orfei circus in Italy. There
they meet Anita Edberg, still
smiling and purring as she did
in "La Dolce Vita." Slowly we
start to realize there are many
more clowns in the film than
we might have suspected.

For that matter, everybody
in the film is a clown, including
Fellini, and he does everything
in his power to make us realize
that. He presents famous
clowns reminiscing about their
old careers and, as they do,
modern clowns perform the
classic routines. But these
people are familiar, and
reflecting we remember we've
seen them in other Fellini films
or earlier in "Clowns."

The film rambles along in
this manner for some time
until Fellini attempts to
research the French clown
Rum. The searching is fruitless
and Fellini verbally worries if
maybe the clown is truly dead.
Then out to a circus ring full of
clowns mourning the death of
one of their members. This
clown funeral is the highlight
of the film. Fellini pulls out
the stops and the effect is one
of the funniest segments in any
of his films.

While the scene is funny, in
style it is purposefully
reminiscent of "8 1/2", and
the closing shot in that, the
"Dance of Life" Guido
celebrates with all the
characters in that film. The
feeling in both films is one of
harmony, and one of unity
achieved through the image of
the circle. In "Clowns," Fellini
cuts to one of his actors who
thanks Fellini for the nice time
he's had acting in the film. The
old man then goes on to
describe his clown act, which
consisted of two trumpeters
playing, of all things, "Ebb
Tide." The feeling in this last
scene is one of emptiness and
loneliness; despite all the
carousing Fellini can do, he
will not be able to revive the
Clown tradition.

"The Clowns" is easily the
most enjoyable film Fellini has
made, and is one which doesn't
require an understanding of his
personal background or the
themes of his previous works.
Those people who are
acquainted with his earlier
films will have a special bonus
in Nino Rota's score, which is a
clever blend of traditional
circus marches and themes
from "8 1/2" and "La Dolce
Vita," Danilo Donati also
merits praise for the stunning
costumes, especially those of
the white clowns.

Even though I thoroughly
enjoyed "The Clowns" both
times I saw it, I am hesitant to
declare that Fellini will start
making outstanding pictures
again. "The Clowns" suffers
from the same lack of
organization cited earlier in
"Satyricon," although the
documentary approach in the
film makes this flaw somewhat
permissible. The film relies
heavily on Fellini's nostalgia, a
device he has used before, and
works because the circus is
something that is universal.

(Now at the University)