X
- 2018
- PG-13
- Netflix
- 2 h 8 m
- 2018
- PG-13
- Netflix
- 2 h 8 m
Summary This is the tale of a meeting between Lazzaro, a young peasant so good that he is often mistaken for simple-minded, and Tancredi, a young nobleman cursed by his imagination. Life in their isolated pastoral village Inviolata is dominated by the terrible Marchesa Alfonsina de Luna, the queen of cigarettes. A loyal bond is sealed when Tancr...
Directed By: Alice Rohrwacher
Written By: Carmela Covino, Alice Rohrwacher
- 2018
- PG-13
- Netflix
- 2 h 8 m
- 2018
- PG-13
- Netflix
- 2 h 8 m
Happy as Lazzaro
7.8
Where to Watch
Summary This is the tale of a meeting between Lazzaro, a young peasant so good that he is often mistaken for simple-minded, and Tancredi, a young nobleman cursed by his imagination. Life in their isolated pastoral village Inviolata is dominated by the terrible Marchesa Alfonsina de Luna, the queen of cigarettes. A loyal bond is sealed when Tancr...
Directed By: Alice Rohrwacher
Written By: Carmela Covino, Alice Rohrwacher
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Universal acclaim
Based on 27 Critic Reviews
87
96% Positive
26 Reviews
26 Reviews
4% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Universal acclaim
Based on 27 Critic Reviews
87
96% Positive
26 Reviews
26 Reviews
4% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
As parable, the film’s slippery quality catches you off guard in the best way. And it summons profound love for a character – a village idiot it would never let you describe that way – without congealing even slightly into sentimentality. It clings on to Lazzaro like the only hope in a benighted world.
A rich sense of mystery pervades this movie. You succumb to its strangeness the way that a child is enveloped in a bedtime story, trusting the teller even when you don’t fully understand the tale or know where it’s going.
User Score
Generally favorable
Based on 59 User Ratings
7.8
80% Positive
47 Ratings
47 Ratings
15% Mixed
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
5% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
User Score
Generally favorable
Based on 59 User Ratings
7.8
80% Positive
47 Ratings
47 Ratings
15% Mixed
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
5% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
Sweepingly breathtaking yet earnestly **** to buy a Netflix account, Google search: vtvshare
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Happy as Lazzaro is slow to reveal its full shape: It’s a realist snapshot of downtrodden lives that gradually takes on shadings of fable and myth, a deceptively plain story that, by the end, all but glows with wonderment and surprise.
Poised somewhere between despondency and hope, its conclusion suggests that, unable to see pure goodness even when it’s right before our eyes, we unwittingly snuff it out. Yet that goodness will endure — and it will outlast us.
Happy As Lazzaro is s-l-o-w and its narrative twist will alienate some. But this is deliberate, singular filmmaking, at once poetic and down-to-earth, from an unsung talent. Let’s be clear: Alice Rohrwacher should cherished.
With Happy as Lazzaro, Rohrwacher has crafted a magic-realist fable that doubles as an origin myth for a modern Italy subsumed by corruption and decline.
The main problem of Happy as Lazzaro is that it's unclear what Rohrwacher finally wants to say in part two, which combines the near-documentary realism of her first feature with the occasional flights of fancy of her second.
A gutting, fantastical, cruel, and beautiful story of an honest, poor, downtrodden man out of time. This Italian indie darling is on Netflix right now. its not animated as the poster might have you think and it is most definitely worth your time.
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I really liked this film. I found Lazzaro a quite endearing figure - he's a quiet, introverted type and he has a sort of naive charm to him - he with the large (and seemingly un-blinking) eyes. I felt frustrated by those who chose to exploit him (if but only mildly) and indeed, exploitation is certainly a relevant theme in this film, as well as tolerance perhaps. I liked/respected the simplicity aspect of it. It has a positive feel about it.
I thought its good as a piece of social commentary. Its quite a charming film in general and so I'd recommend it.
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Happy As Lazzaro – The Smell **** Man
Tuscan-born writer/director Alice Rohrwacher has created an Award-winning allegorical observation on how the average person stumbles along, following the ruling classes orders of the day. Most live without stopping to analyze the derogatory impact, this almost hidden manipulation, has on our everyday understanding of the true meaning of life. Curiously, the writer based part of this strange story on a factual newspaper story! The manipulation of the poorer classes by greedy conglomerates - fleecing workers for a pittance in return for endless hard labor. How empty modern lifestyles can offer little more benefits than those of the slave workers, too often pushing the good in humanity to obscurity. It’s not a film for everyone and many viewers may miss important messages within this thoughtful work – perhaps one reason could be because they blindly accept the hidden economic controls, enforced on the world’s working classes. ‘Lazzaro’ is both enigmatic and silently devastating to any viewer prepared to consider how the world’s bankers – pervade every aspect of modern life - often reducing it to rubble for struggling nations. It's little coincidence this film comes to its haunting conclusion inside a bank! It’s a longish tale (2 hrs) so needing a patient, discerning audience. It could possibly have conveyed its thoughtful message in less time but those attuned to reading between the lines of our every day news media...will be quite willing to take the journey. Fascinatingly the filmmaker is able to convince the viewer to accept quite jarring, bizarre twists, as if we trust somehow they are taking us towards a meaningful outcome. Sought after French cinematographer Hélène Louvart provides the darkly probing visuals. There is an interesting piano soliloquy that plays out here and there but the film has no score composer. Performances are uniformly good, making this a treat for those who like to think about their entertainment – the sensitive viewer might find the final scene one not easily forgotten (aided by a Wolf and some Italian folklore)
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HAPPY AS LAZZARO is too pure for this world. Irresistible but never irritating, realistic with magical touch, a real time capsule that brings the best and the worst out of humankind seamlessly. One thing arranging shocking tonal shift and miraculous swindle, it is life itself.
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Production Company
Tempesta,
Rai Cinema,
Amka Films Productions,
Ad Vitam Production,
KNM,
Pola Pandora Filmproduktions,
RSI-Radiotelevisione Svizzera,
Arte France Cinéma,
Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF),
ARTE,
ARTE,
Eurimages,
Office Fédéral de la Culture,
Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg,
CNC Aide aux cinémas du monde - Institut Français,
Centre national du cinéma et de l'image animée (CNC),
Regione Lazio,
Ministero dei Beni e delle Attività Culturali e del Turismo (MiBACT),
Film Commission Torino-Piemonte
Release Date Nov 30, 2018
Duration 2 h 8 m
Rating PG-13
Awards
David di Donatello Awards
• 9 Nominations
CinEuphoria Awards
• 1 Win & 8 Nominations
European Film Awards
• 1 Win & 6 Nominations
