‘Che ora è‘, Ettore Scola‘s 1989 film, is an admirable demonstration of the fact that great films can often be simple and that sophisticated effects or complex plots are not always necessary to reach the hearts of viewers. All one needs is a script that tells a story or describes a true situation in words that work well on screen and the right actors to transform the images into living episodes that move or convey meaningful messages. Sounds simple, right? But how many directors have the talent, luck and audacity to make such movies? Ettore Scola is certainly one of them and if ‘Che ora è‘ is a rarely mentioned and perhaps lesser known entry in his filmography, it is time, I think, for a re-evaluation.
The film tells the story of a day in the lives of a father and his son who meet after many years of distance – perhaps not so much geographically, but emotionally. Marcello, the father, is a very wealthy lawyer who has no problem making expensive presents such as an apartment in the center of Rome or a luxury car. Michele, the son, is in the military and doesn’t really seem to know what he wants to do with his life. The father comes from Rome to the harbor town of Civitavecchia where his son is serving to spend a day with him and try to get to know him better, to guide him and help him in the way he believes is best. The two men are very different, however. Gradually, we understand that it is not just a generation gap and a difference in communication styles. Marcello had been a busy and absent father. The attempt to reconnect with his son is belated, accompanied by exaggerated gifts, inappropriate advice, intrusive pressure. There is a lot of talk, but verbal communication does not work well. The opening that occurs at a certain point is occasioned by shared memories and the watch inherited from Marcello’s father, Michele’s grandfather, which is for the latter a more precious gift than all the other treasures offered by his father. The two may get to know each other a little better, but their worlds remain different. As normal, after all.
I have already said that there is a lot of talking in the film, and perhaps some viewers will be bothered by this aspect. I think that for the screenwriters the verbosity (excessive even for an Italian film) was intentional. In this way they emphasized better than anywhere else that in communication words do not always help and sometimes even harm – they mask and distort. The moments of closeness are non-verbal, and perhaps it would have been good if there were a little more of them. The interpretation of the two actors is masterful. For Marcello Mastroianni this is one of the most impressive roles of the (too early) end of a formidable career. Massimo Troisi is an excellent partner and the two of them are believable and moving. I think many of the men who saw this film recognized themselves in the characters of the father and the son, maybe in both. I dare say that ‘Che ora è‘ (no question mark, THIS is the original title!) is one of the most moving films about father-son relationships ever made.