In the vast ocean of cinema, some films are remembered for their plot twists, others for their performances. But every so often, a film arrives that defies conventional categorization—a work that feels less like a story and more like a state of being. Alice Rohrwacher’s 2018 masterpiece, Happy as Lazzaro (original Italian title: Lazzaro felice ), is precisely such an anomaly.
We can choose, in small moments, to not return anger for anger. We can offer bread to a stranger. We can look at a collapsing world and, like Lazzaro seeing the wolf, recognize that even predators are part of God’s strange, broken family. happy.as.lazzaro.2018
In this world, the Marchesa uses a bizarre justification for their slavery: she claims they are "inventing" their payments, essentially gaslighting an entire village into believing that working for free is a privilege. In the vast ocean of cinema, some films
Shot on 16mm film, Happy as Lazzaro has a grainy, amber-drenched look for the first half (hay, dust, twilight) and a harsh, digital-blue tone for the second (concrete, neon, rain). The shift is jarring but purposeful. We can choose, in small moments, to not