Beyond the Clouds (Al di là delle nuvole)

Movie · 1995 · 7 people

Michelangelo Antonioni and Wim Wenders directed Al di là delle nuvole (Beyond the Clouds), an Italian-French-German anthology romance film from 1995. Written by Antonioni, Wenders and Tonino Guerra, it was adapted from Antonioni's 1986 book That Bowling Alley on the Tiber and became the director's final feature-length film before his death in 2007. Wenders conceived the project as a comeback for the then-retired filmmaker, shooting the prologue, interludes and epilogue himself.

The film presents four stories of romantic love and illusion told from the perspective of a wandering film director: two young lovers unable to consummate their passion because the man desires impossible perfection, the director's encounter with a woman who confesses she murdered her father, a man torn between his wife and his mistress, and a young man infatuated with a girl about to enter a convent. The ensemble cast includes John Malkovich, Sophie Marceau, Fanny Ardant, Irène Jacob, Vincent Perez, Jean Reno, Kim Rossi Stuart, Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau.

DirectorMichelangelo Antonioni, Wim Wenders
Production companySunshine

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Through different eyes

Cinephile Looks at script, editing and directing choices; keeps a distance from formula films.

Beyond the Clouds (Al di là delle nuvole) brings two very different temperaments in film history together in one work. Antonioni's four stories show, for the last time at feature length, his language of looks, empty space and estrangement, while the prologue, interludes and epilogue shot by Wenders try to hold them together through the eyes of a wandering director. The problem is that this frame often feels less like glue than like a narrator's voice cutting in. The stories are uneven too: the lovers kept from their passion by the man's demand for perfection make the strongest segment, while the others repeat themselves at times. The large star cast does not carry equal weight in every story either. Flawed, but important as a master's farewell.

Yeşilçam Nostalgic A viewer raised on the classics, looking for warm storytelling and strong acting.

Seeing Marcello Mastroianni and Jeanne Moreau in the same cast is a gift in itself for anyone who loves the golden years of European cinema. The retired Antonioni returning behind the camera with Wenders's help gives the film a wistful air of farewell. Its four stories of love and illusion are told with the finesse of the old masters. Still, it must be admitted that the stories carry more distance than warmth, and it is not easy to bond with the characters from the heart. An eye used to warm storytelling looks on this cool elegance with admiration, but also from a little way off.

Family Viewer Asks whether the whole household can watch it; cares about humour and heart.

Beyond the Clouds is not a film to watch with children. It tells four separate love stories and deals with adult subjects such as passion, infidelity and a woman who says she killed her father. It is also very slow, and even teenagers may get bored. It suits adults who enjoy European cinema. For a family night, pick something else.

These are not reader reviews: they are short editorial takes written from different viewer perspectives with AI assistance. Reader reviews are below.

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