The great beauty: film analysis and themes

¶ … Beauty

Life of excess, hedonism and instant gratification vs. A life of substance, solid relationship, and a life of purpose

Pleasure and freedom is a practice in futility and wasted time and years

Life of excess, hedonism and instant gratification in The Great Beauty

Instant gratification leads to lost relationships, present or starting to blossom

Hedonism in the form of sex and prostitution, drug use, and alcohol abuse

Restatement of thesis: There is more to life than shallow relationship and mindless pleasure-seeking.

Media acts as a venue that counteracts the thesis (ie, media promotes life of excess, hedonism, and instant gratification)

Divergent views in the film: religion and morality vs. A life without concern for anyone else

Prostitution and media's perpetuation of it as a "victimless crime"

b. Banning of night clubs and casual/non-marital sex in the film

Reiteration of thesis: there is a potentially huge price to be paid if pleasure-seeking is not balanced with a life of substance

a. Example 1: drinking alcohol to the point of excess after a job promotion, but resuming to one's responsibilities the day after

b. Example 2: temporary separation for a couple who would like to think more about their relationship

VII. Comparison of art and beauty in the life of Jep, the main character in The Great Beauty

a. Beauty in Jep's life was centered on himself (self-involvedness)

b. Beauty in Jep's life was only temporary

VIII. Comparison between Jep and Rome in the film