Critic’s Pick: ‘The Conformist’

‘The Conformist’

It’s hard to believe Bernardo Bertolucci’s “The Conformist” is 40 years old. The filmmaker’s 1970s surreal masterwork couldn’t feel more contemporary with its tale of political and sexual dark forces in Mussolini’s Facist Italy. Worth seeing on its two-night run at LACMA’s Bing Theater on Friday and Saturday for the sheer beauty alone. It’s as if the director personally framed every shot for the Uffizi. But, ultimately, it is Marcello’s story, in Jean-Louis Trintignant’s remarkable hands, that will sweep you away — the false marriage, his paralyzing homosexuality, the political assassination dropped on his plate. One part political potboiler, one part social commentary, all of the highest order.

—Betsy Sharkey