Best of Youth

‘Best of Youth’ long but worth watching

JASMINE TRINCA, Lugi Lo Cascio and Allessio Boni in "The Best of Youth."

“La meglio gioventu” is a sprawling saga of two brothers in Italy and how their lives take different paths.
Known in English as “The Best of Youth,” it is a lengthy 360 minutes divided over two DVDs.
The story starts in 1966 and focuses on brothers Nicola and Matteo Carati (played by Lugi Lo Cascio and Allessio Boni.)
Nicola is finishing medical school while Matteo is still taking classes.
Nicola gets a part-time job taking a pretty mental patient for walks. She’s played by Jasmine Trinca.
When they see signs Jasmine has been the victim of electric shock therapy, Nicola goes to the mental hospital, wakes her up and convinces her to come with him.
The brothers decide to take her to her father.
Her father can’t take her in and decides to take her back to the mental hospital but Nicola intercedes. Unfortunately, all does not work out well with the young mental patient and she ends up in the institution again.
It is the beginning of the six-hour saga that celebrates friends and family via the backdrop of the world from the 60s to the new millennium.
Along the way, Nicola meets Giulia, who loves music and the piano, but is also a rebel who ends up on the run. The two have a daughter, who Nicola has the responsibility of rearing.
Matteo eventually becomes a police officer who starts a relationship with a photographer.
Nicola becomes a psychiatrist.
Nicola does his best to raise the daughter while her mother is on the lam.
The tumultuous lives of all of the friends and family, coupled with the beautiful scenery in Italy and the backdrop of the various eras makes for compelling viewing.
It almost reminds you of a sprawling John Jakes novel transplanted from 18th or 19th century America to 20th century Italy.
The plot actually takes a backseat to the sheer power of the personalities of the main character as generation produces generation.
Both brothers try to find and define themselves. One at least is moderately successful. The other sees his life end tragically.
The film ends on a positive note with great reconciliation and a wedding. Life goes on, even when the camera stops
It is a film of great beauty that celebrates the arts at times and denotes tremendous brutality at others.
But “The Best of Youth” is worth the investment. The film is available for rent on two discs through, among other outlets, Netflix.

LA MEGLIO GIOVENTU
• Directed by Marco Tullio Giordana
• Written by Sandro Petraglia and Stefano Rulii
• In Italian with English subtitles
• Rated R for language and nudity
• Runtime: 360 minutes
• 3 1/2 stars out of 4