Revolutionary Road (2008): Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, and Michael Shannon
You ever wonder whether or not you’re living life to the fullest? Revolutionary Road touches the idea of the ideal American dream and how it can really go south if you realize that you hate your life and wonder if the grass is greener on the other side. Frank Wheeler (DiCaprio) and April Wheeler (Winslet) are your typical suburban family; husband goes to work and wife stays home to care for the children and clean. However they are not happy with their repetitive and emptiness of their lives, so April convinces Frank to move to France to feel what it feels like to live. However Frank gets a job offer with more guaranteed money and April finding out she is pregnant again leaves both of them arguing and whether to stay in France or staying in the hopelessness of their current lives.
Memorable Quote:“Hopeless emptiness. Now you’ve said it. Plenty of people are onto the emptiness, but it takes real guts to see the hopelessness” (John Givings).
8 1/2 (1963): Starring Marcello Mastroianni, Anouk Aime¢e, and Sandra Milo
Whenever you experience writers block or any type of blocks that won’t let you be productive, you feel as though it’s on purpose that your brain won’t let you be productive. The same can be said of the protagonist of 8 1/2. Guido Anselmi, a famous Italian director, is suffering from director’s block as he works on his new science fiction installation. Without any idea of what the film should be, losing interest in the project, and having to deal with his marital problems altogether, his flashbacks and dreams dig into his memories and finds it difficult to separate fantasy and reality.
Memorable Quote: “All the confusion of my life… has been a reflection of myself! Myself as I am, not as I’d like to be” (Guido Anselmi).