Amarcord [Criterion Collection]

Amarcord is a mosaic of anecdotes based on the experiences of director, Federico Fellini. The film is set in the seaside Italian village of Amarcord, where the Fellini counterpart, young Titta (Bruno Zanin), grows up during the Fascist-dominated 1930s. Many familiar elements from Fellini's earlier films are still in evidence, including the ubiquitous fat whore who represents the director's sexual awakening. Among the best of the newer vignettes is the "living" parade float designed in the shape of Mussolini's face, and the sequence involving Titta's addlepated uncle (Ciccio Ingrassia) who perches himself in the treetops, screaming "I want a woman!" The most profound moments involve the death of Titta's mother (Puppela Maggio). Amarcord won the Academy Award for best foreign film of 1974.