In the film, "Best of Youth," I feel that many interpretations can arise. Prior to the film, my partner and I discussed what we thought the movie may encompass. Derived from the name, we brainstormed that it would be a rather positive film focused on uplifting stereotypes attached to youth; young romance, freedom in the sense of not working yet and being able to test new things, or interests. However, the film was very different from this. It depicted many struggles and hardships, but also the ability to change your own life trajectory as well as pros and cons that could arise; similarly, to Matteo and Nicola regarding their very different career paths, as well as the difference from what was discussed heavily in their family in the beginning. Both of the brothers were pushed into going through with university education, but both ended up in a polar opposite path and not going through with attending a university. In a way, I think this highlights the process of finding individuality in youth and into adulthood and potentially breaking away from strict expectations set by family and moving into deciding more for yourself with considering your own wants for yourself first, and being able to then prioritize those own wants and needs first.
Connection through differences was also a prevalent, recurring theme in the film. Applied to the real world, there will always be individuals with different beliefs, perspectives, and values that navigate peoples' perspectives and thoughts. Throughout the film, understanding through difference was consistently reiterated. Largely with the politics, a distinct scene with opposing views was depicted between Giulia and Matteo during the political protests. Matteo, as a member in the army, had a strong view on the matter due to his friend enduring significant injuries from a protestor. Giulia on the other hand, had a strong humanitarian view as being someone protesting against those same armed forces. Being on completely opposing sides, strong emotions were elicited when the topic of the protests were the center of focus. Additionally, through this, Nicola was depicted as a mediator, and went on to discuss some of her positive personality traits, and a moment of understanding was shown through the language of the two brothers, and also through their expressed emotions and body language. Similarly, the value of connection was depicted by the brothers maintaining their relationships despite their vast differences, and paths they went on. From this element, the viewers can consistently see the importance of an open mind to difference as you can still maintain your own values and perspective.
Pt. 2
In the second portion of the film, I found a prominent theme to be the strength of their family ties, or the people that they are closest to and have love for, such as Giorgia. Consistently, and especially the brothers, are shown to rekindle despite what their current situation is. When Giorgia was found again in the asylum, Nicola and Matteo rejoined. Additionally, when the father was ill, Matteo was more present again even though his internal battles were clearly depicted as well. Going off of this, a pivotal moment was when their father passed away. Matteo, who has been shown to be very closed off, distant, and angry at times was shown enduring a very emotional moment. This, to me, was very symbolic of their closeness as a family despite the hardship in between the lines because that has been the only moment where we have seen Matteo let go in terms of emotions and allow himself to be vulnerable with his brother.
Similarly, Giorgia has also been shown as mediating to the brothers and has had a role in rejoining them as well. Connecting to familial values and their value for those they love, each time Giorgia has been shown again, the brothers have come together, and also worked together at times to aid in giving help -- Giorgia seems to ground the brothers. Specifically with Matteo, I think Giorgia and him connect in the sense of feeling at a loss with their emotions. Matteo is shown to struggle with emotional closeness and emotional expression largely while Giorgia also endures emotional and mental deficits assumingly so due to her intense, traumatic asylum treatments and trauma. With this, he can connect with her, and during their most recent interaction, they are both rather calm compared to past encounters where both have been shown to be aggressive at times, or anxious whether they are from similar or very different reasons. For Nicola, I think that Giorgia is another character that displays Nicola's drive for the people he loves most and also his selflessness. Connecting to Giorgia, since Nicola has become aware of the harm asylums were doing and seeing the horrible consequences with Giorgia firsthand, it has shown him continuously working to help not only her, but asylums and mental disorder centers overall in Italy and to try and redirect the stigma around the mental disorders away from being seen as "crazy" and to see and treat those people in the centers as people.
In another light, Nicola's selflessness is shown in the scene where Giulia leaves. At first, he is shown attempting to stop her from leaving while also posing questions with the intent of making her really think about the decision she is making. Then, a shift takes places. He stops himself from blocking the door, but then goes to open it symbolizing him letting her leave. Although he knew the circumstances, I think he also endured a realization that Giulia may have already been gone -- through her apparent personality and character change or decline with increasing distance -- and that he could not keep her where she did not want to be kept, despite his own want for her to stay.
Pt. 3
Overall, the movie was embedded with many parallels and underlying messages through each character. Aside from the character development and changes as well though; love, peace, and freedom were recurring concepts that prevailed in circumstances throughout the movie and in positive, but also negative lights.
While Matteo's character did not have what would be considered anywhere close to a happy ending, I think beauty can also be found in his ending. Throughout Matteo's journey, he endured vast amounts of pain, hardship, struggle, as well as internal battles constantly. He pushed away people around him, he did not disclose often to people close to him, he was very angry as well as easily agitated and provoked. Without considering the vast challenges he endured and went through -- his big career change and flunking his exam, the intensity and protests during his time in the military, watching his only friend get brutally attacked to learn soon after that he has resulting paralysis, the constant battle to free Giorgia and provide help to her knowing what she went through, losing his father to illness, as well as other events between all main characters where struggle was shared -- his emotional turmoil was already difficult enough. By the end of the film, I was not surprised that he chose to end his life. In the scene preceding his death, his family was together for New Years, and I viewed it as peace and closure for Matteo before making his decision that he was going to make. Throughout the film, Matteo's absence and distance from his family was reiterated and also his reluctance to confide in them and develop a very strong relationship with his parents especially, not much so Nicola. However, and with this, I think in the final scene of them all together for New Years, he saw that they would get to a place where they would be able to be okay without him and I think he found peace in that. In hindsight, I think he was very much set on his decision and used that time together to see them one last time and know that they will be together. Prior to leaving Nicola at the door in this scene, he had another long look at Nicola, and I think in his mind he was already saying goodbye and knew that it would be their last encounter.
As disheartening as it was to see Matteo's ending, I think it connects to the idea that beauty can exist in pain. For Matteo, and considering what I previously touched on, he struggled and endured pain way more than happiness. He was angry with the world, angry with his family at times and in different ways, and mostly angry with himself and dealt with identity loss and confusion. Through his ending, a perspective that can be had is that he is no longer suffering in his mind, and in that sense is free and free from his mind and hardship. Additionally, his death was an aid in the family becoming even closer and them also gaining more peace and freedom. His loss I think was the last pivotal moment in the film that was also one of the hardest as a family to experience. Shortly after this, they made their move from the city to the countryside while also having pieces of Matteo through Andrea and parallels shown. This move in my opinion, was symbolic of gaining peace and freedom from their hardship and battles faced in the city that they would not experience in the country. Because of this outcome, I think that beauty was very present in this storyline and reiterated the capability to change your life trajectory for the better.
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