Movies

The film  The Light of my Eyes  or Luce dei miei occhi is one of those films that deftly takes on the topics of love, loss, and survival. A gripping tale that perfectly captures the troubles experienced in real life,  The Light of my eyes  is a must-watch for fans of the neorealist film culture. As one of those films that deviate from the norm of Hollywood films wherein drama in a relationship is often instigated by a selfish, cheating womanizing man, the films male lead Antonio (played by Luigi Lo Cascio) is an honest cabbie who falls for Maria (Sandra Ceccarellli), a single mom who   despite numerous efforts and self-sacrifice on Antonios part, refuses to acknowledge his feelings toward her and remains cold and indifferent to Antonio almost all throughout the film. Setting up the tale for a real-world romance, the characters play their parts perfectly with all-too-real acting   the kind of thing that we actually see in our day to day experiences. This plus the overall mood of the film makes you feel like youre watching a poem unfold in real life.

Antonio and Maria were brought together by a chance near-accident when one night, as Antonio was driving home, he almost hits a young girl who was led out to the street by a cat she was chasing. Antonio checks on the girl, whose name was Lisa, and in a few moments, Maria   who was Lisas mom   comes to pick her up on her scooter. Despite the concern and care shown by Antonio, Maria remains suspicious of his intentions. This marks the beginning of their relationship Antonio showing nothing but genuine concern, while Maria   despite everything she has to be thankful for in Antonio   remains a picture of skepticism and doubt. Immediately Antonio reaches out to the audience, winning their hearts over almost instantaneously.  Despite the fact that this film does not necessarily have a protagonist or antagonist   as real life is not just black and white but all shades of in between   Antonio, who despite being not perfect manages to remain on the good side, is almost immediately considered the  hero of the tale , so to speak, although most   if not all   the characters in the film suffer their fair share of tragedies and disappointments.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Antonio begins following Maria who lives with her daughter and is trying to make ends meet by running a frozen foods shop. The two hook up eventually, with Maria even inviting Antonio over for dinner and a romantic evening. Both seem to enjoy the pleasure of each others company for that night, but soon after, Maria reverts back to her old ways and acts coldly toward Antonio very much like the very frozen food shop she operates. Despite this, Antonio continues to try to get closer to Maria, even going out of his way to settle matters with the loan shark Saverio whom Maria owes a lot of money. To help out Maria with her loan predicament, Antonio befriends Saverio and gets him to drop Marias debts by offering his services as a driver and companion.

Despite these unselfish and unsolicited acts on Antonios part, he still could not quite manage to win Marias affections. Antonio gets tired of this constant rejection from Maria that he eventually stops his efforts to pursue Maria and just went on running errands for Saverio. This drives Antonio to a state of depression, meanwhile Maria experiences the same sadness and longing as well, being treated badly by her ex-husband. And as her financial woes go deeper, she eventually allows her daughter Lisa to be taken in the care of her grandparents.

Now left with nothing but the things they thought were important, both Antonio and Maria come upon a realization that what they have already lost are what they really wanted in their lives and now they have to get it back. Maria her daughter Lisa, and Antonio his relationship with Maria. In the end, they set out to reclaim those that they have lost, in an effort to bring back joy to their lives.

As the male lead in the film, Antonio has gone through the most experiences that would garner a lot of empathy   if not sympathy   from the audience. Here is a good guy, a straight arrow, always doing what is right and beneficial to those concerned. People would most often think that he deserves a good life   a loving partner, a fulfilling job, all that is deemed suitable for a good person. But this film stays true to the path of neorealism, making sure that everything happens as it does in real life, with none of the hokey one-in-a-million coincidences that Hollywood films attribute to  fate  or  destiny  or even  serendipity , and life, as we all have learned the one way or another, is seldom fair and just. Antonio is subjected to hardships and misfortunes one after the other, and ends up driving a taxi for a living, relating his experiences to the science fiction novels he reads. Yes, reality opens up Antonios character to the joys of love, but he also suffers the harsh pain of rejection as Maria turns him down over and over, again and again, treating him coldly.

Though the film did not depict any death in the form of a character dying or ceasing to exist, one may still say that Antonios experiences of death does not necessarily entail the loss of life, but loss in general. A night with Maria has led him to believe he may be able to start a future with her, but then her subsequent rejection left him at such a loss that it would have become unbearable had he not been a man of virtue. This feeling could only feel like going through the death of someone or something you love. Antonio is plunged into despair, resorting to going on with his engagements with Saverio. This  is a common reaction to grief, as most people often keep themselves busy when something bad happens to them to avoid having to stop and think about things. Most often it is thought that reflecting on a loss would result  in catastrophic depression, which for a time, Antonio slid in despite his keeping himself busy with Saverios errands   just another reflection on Antonios good nature, as he shows he can not shut out his thoughts of Maria, as most men would commonly do.

Despite having felt this loss, Antonio strives to go on with his life, eventually realizing that no good would come of his sulking. And with the recent developments in Marias situation, Antonio sees an opportunity to pursue that which matters most to him. Despite the films cliffhanger ending, it clearly shows that Antonio and Marias tale is one of survival. For a tale of survival does not necessarily entail a happy ending, but one that paints a picture of the  will to move on.