Marcello Mastroianni
La Dolce Vita, 8 ½ and Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow are only a few of the more than 170 films to capture the style, truthfulness, and character of Marcello Mastroianni. Mastroianni made it a point throughout his career to never perform or accept a role that he felt unable to live up to in real life. Therefore, he steered clear of the typical heroic style of John Wayne or Clark Gable with the belief that he could never interest an audience by being the hero. This idea allowed him to constantly change his roles and to rarely play similar characters (Bachmann, 4). He brought comedy and drama to life in the theater and on the screen, both nationally and internationally while capturing the true Italian spirit; from the age of the economic miracle of the north to the crises of the south. Mastroianni was born just after World War I and just as fascism rose to become the leading political institution in Italy. As the son of a poor carpenter in the town of Fontana Liri, south of Rome, Mastroianni found his way in and out of meaningless jobs until he traveled north to the University of Rome where he attended school with emphases in economics and commerce (Obituary, 1997). In his free time he participated in the school's drama department and it was during this stint with the department, theater director Luchino Visconti discovered the talent of the young artist and gave him opportunities in performances such as, Death of a Salesman and A Streetcar Named Desire. And so his acting career began in 1947 and continued until the year after his death in 1996 (Britannica Online, 1997).

His career began with comedies in the 1950's that connected neo-realism and commedia all'italiana (Obituary, 1997). He made light of the pressures facing modern Italy, and with sympathy and understanding he also dramatized the role. This technique made struggles seem trivial and took worries out the minds and hearts of those watching, at least for a few hours.

Growing up in a relatively poor household gave Mastroianni the ability to see both sides of the fence as his popularity brought him wealth. On one side there were struggles of poverty and on the other side there were struggles of what type of character to play. He actually saw both worlds, that of the poor and that of the wealthy. As a wealthier man in a changing Italy, Mastroianni saw modern capitalism within the very same society that he once saw fascism. This perspective allowed him the opportunity to play many different roles, but each with the same sense of passion, knowledge, truth and dignity. Mastroianni provided people with a sense of hope and at the same time contributed comic relief to the working people of Italy. His work drew people in because he actually connected with all types of people and demonstrated true character. Mastroianni began his acting career in the aftermath of World War II as Italy and many other countries reconstructed themselves. He brought laughter and mystery to the Italian people in a time of destruction, devastation and heartache. His style delivered smiles and tears to his millions of viewers.

By the middle of the 1950's, Mastroianni had become a favorite in theater and film in Italy. However, it wasn't until 1958 that he won his first award, the Italian Film Critics' Silver Ribbon for the film Le notti bianche (Britannica Online, 1997). And in 1960 Mastroianni launched his international career with an honorable performance in Federico Fellini's film La dolce vita. In the years that followed Mastroianni stole the hearts of millions of movie-goers for his work in films that depicted him as a romantic leading man, such as Divorce-Italian Style and 8 ½;. During this same time frame, Mastroianni starred with Sophia Loren. The duo were incredibly successful and paired in numerous movies.

Mastroianni, dubbed the Latin Lover, actually denied this label, while the public continued to use the term and find it quite appropriate. The phrase originated due to the idea that Mastroianni always played the leading romantic male role. However, in 1977 he challenged this label by playing a homosexual man in the film A Special Day, a controversial role for his time. In his many interviews,Mastroianni never considered himself anything close to a Latin Lover. As a matter of fact he states in a recent one, "This idea that you have in America: you put on me a label so horrible. This is absolutely crazy because if you observe my career, I was never macho in a film. I was always the victim of Sophia Loren, I was impotent, I was homosexual, and I was pregnant." (Filmplex, 1995).

During the early part of the 1990's, Mastroianni finally made it to Hollywood after a long inner struggle with himself whether to learn English or not. He had difficulty learning the language and continued to battle it after he did learn it. Remarkably, this had no effect on Mastroianni's career which lasted for over 40 years in Italian films. Through this time he was married to the same woman and had two wonderful daughters with her, and although he admitted not taking enough time in life to stop and smell the roses, he could never deny the many wonderful experiences that accompanied his work. His work allowed him, or rather forced him, to travel to new places, to meet new people and to, undoubtedly, have fun.

Through all of this he had only a couple regrets. First, he never really knew his daughters during their childhood (in one of his later films he stars with one of them). As he puts it he "never really paid much attention to" the activity surrounding him. Second, he felt as though he never really grew up. He believed that all actors and actresses hid behind their everyday fears, hopes, and in some cases lives behind the camera(Bachmann, 6).

In the year following his death, Mastroianni's film finally ended with a parting film titled, I Remember, Yes I Remember. He projected his style,charm, grace and memories to the camera in autobiographical style. Mastroianni leads us through towns and cities, from private homes to public architectural works and he also remembers his colleagues: his many co-stars and directors of famous Italian film (I Remember, 1997)

As Mastroianni has so elegantly remarked, "The important thing is to know what season of your life you are living, and not to try and be something on the screen which is ridiculous. To be conscious of the time, of your image..."