Watch Le Quattro Volte

Le Quattro Volte (The Four Times in English) is a 2010 Italian film, written and directed by Michelangelo Frammartino. The movie is set in a small village in southern Italy and explores the cycle of life through the perspective of the four elements: earth, water, air, and fire. The movie opens with an old man, an elderly goatherd named Simone (Giuseppe Fuda), and his herd of goats walking down a hill. Simone is surrounded by death, but he finds peace in his solitude and the natural world around him. His daily routine consists of caring for his goats and participating in traditional rituals. The first segment of the movie is dedicated to his story with little dialogue and a lot of attention given to the natural scenery.

The second segment of the movie focuses on a towering tree in the nearby forest. This tree is a majestic symbol of life, but the camera captures the life around the tree more than the tree itself. The tree is intrinsically linked to the other elements. From the tree, the camera observes the birth and life of a kid goat, the coming together of the villagers to chop the tree down for a festival, and finally shows its transformation, as its remains are loaded onto trucks and transported to be used for various purposes.

The third segment of the movie explores the life of the goat that we had witnessed being born earlier in the movie. The camera follows her adventures as she escapes from her pen and meets the dead bodies of her mother and other goats which were inexplicably abandoned on a truck destined for the abattoir. The camera is mesmerized with the goat's journey as she wanders the countryside, passing farm animals and even playful dogs. It is a clear critique of humanity's disregard for nature but framed in a way that maintains the natural flow of life.

The fourth and final segment of the movie guides us through the death of the old man, whose character opened the film. As Simone lays on his deathbed, his soul is leaving his body, and he symbolically transforms into a tree. The sequence details the transformation of the physical world and how all things, including living and nonliving, are connected through the cycle of life.

The movie is a cinematic masterpiece, narrating the story of the cycle of life through its four key elements: earth, water, air, and fire. No dialogue is exchanged in the first quarter of the film, and the camera movements feel like a living organism. Perhaps the movie's uniqueness stems from its sensation of living and breathing together with the natural world. The filmmaker's approach to exploring the cycle of life feels like a poetic yet thought-provoking abstract that provokes viewers to ponder the idea that everything is inextricably linked.

The movie's story is a subtle commentary on the interdependence of living creatures, humans, and natural elements. The director dives deep into the meaning of human existence and our impact on nature. The idea is to show that all life on earth share a common destiny, and we are all only transient phases in the larger cycle of life. It raises deeper questions about the meaning of human existence, the value of life, and the mental anguish that comes with it.

The overall cinematography of the film is impressive. The camera glides through the lush landscapes of Southern Italy and captures the animals' daily lives, the people's celebrations, and the tranquility of nature. The use of natural sounds in the film is also notable as it perfectly blends with the aesthesis of life. The lack of dialogue serves to invoke the essence of the natural world around us, concluding that the world speaks for itself.

In conclusion, Le Quattro Volte is a magical blend of auteur cinema and humanistic philosophy that represents an original, daring approach to storytelling. Michelangelo Frammartino has created a film that invites deep thought, leaving one with a lasting impression that lingers in the mind long after the movie has ended. The movie takes the viewer on a meditative journey of the cycle of life, culminating in an epic vision that is both contemplative and satisfying. The acting, direction, cinematography, and editing are all superbly executed, making the movie a standout achievement in filmmaking.

Le Quattro Volte is a 2011 drama with a runtime of 1 hour and 28 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.2 and a MetaScore of 80.