A pocketfull of Italian new wave

"Fists in the Pocket" emerged during the 1960's New Wave era in Europe, which was heavily dominated by directors like Francois Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. Although this film might not be as popular as many of the other titles released during that time period, it's still highly subversive, groundbreaking and a remarkable debut by Italian filmmaker Marco Bellocchio. \nThe film examines the lives of what seems like a typical Catholic middle class family in the Italian countryside. This is a family that, despite its quarrels and lack of communication, appears relatively normal at the surface. Augusto, the oldest brother and patriarch, is the only character in the family with any stability, but he fails to maintain any order or control. \nHis younger brother, Alessandro, is a troubled young man who plots against and undermines the family throughout the film, not necessarily because he despises them or feels pleasure by doing so, but because he wants to feel important and free himself from them.\nAt first, he does things like teasing his blind mother by waving his hand in her face and throwing water at his sister while the family eats dinner. We're not sure if he's epileptic or just faking it, but he occasionally slips into seizures and receives much attention from his sister. These things are common for Alessandro, and Bellocchio digs deeper into the character's troubling and erratic nature as the film progresses. Alessandro's constant need for attention and disregard for consequences transform him from quirky and immature to psychotic and dangerous. \nOne minute he's tampering with a child's report card, the next, he's contemplating ways to murder his family by possibly driving them off a cliff to rid his older brother of the burden of taking care of them. Initially it seems as though the small village and isolation play a major role in driving Alessandro mad, but it's more an accumulation of his delusions and fears. \nHe wants to break away from his family but fails to function without them. His only successful social encounter involves a run in with a prostitute he meets while walking and he becomes extremely reserved and frustrated at a birthday party his brother takes him to. Alessandro's blind mother, slower younger brother and bipolar sister all fall victim to his schemes and, rather than feeling any sense of fulfillment from his actions like he hoped, grows even more out of touch with reality. \nThe coveted Criterion Collection's DVD release features a superb and fully restored version of the film, as well as an original theatrical trailer, interviews with the cast and crew, and a video afterword by director Bernardo Bertolucci. Marco Bellocchio did an excellent job of setting an eerie mood for the psychological themes in this film as well as illustrating the desperation and tension that grew in that house.