Gaudy, more integrated than later Fellini, but this take on feminine psyche lacks vision. Juliet's fantasies might have been culled from Hollywood back lots, suggesting women have colorful imaginations, but not much in the brain department.
Juliet (Giulietta Masina) is a married woman in her mid-30s, more or less resigned to a dull life with her dull husband, Giorgio (Mario Pisu), who pays her little attention. At first she thinks it's just the pressures of business that cause him to be so indifferent, but soon she begins to wonder
if he may have someone else. One night, Giorgio and some friends hold a seance, and Juliet discovers that she can conjure up various spirits. These wraiths tell her that she deserves some enjoyment in life and should give herself a treat. To see if her suspicions about Giorgio are correct, Juliet
hires a sleuth who corroborates her worst fears, causing her to change her lifestyle and move out from the shadow of her unloving husband.
A feminized version of 8 1/2--both Masina's and Pisu's characters drift in and out of fantasy in order to come to grips with reality--JULIET OF THE SPIRITS will likely appeal to fans of that previous Fellini picture. This was his first color feature, and the results are spectacular and festive. leave a comment
