#001 Cinema Paradiso (1988)

       Like any other happening small village, Giancaldo filled with people with different ages, personalities, families, jobs, status and background. Children went to school, the men worked hard to support the household, women generally stayed or worked at home, the rich ones separated themselves with the poor ones, the poor ones sometimes talked bad about the rich ones... It was few years after war. However, there was one place could unite all the villagers, whether young or old, male or female, rich or poor, they love this place- Cinema Paradiso, the only cinema in the village at that time.

       Throughout the film, I would like to highlight the relationship between Alfredo, the old projectionist of the cinema, and Salvatore, one who loves film since he was a small boy- Fatherly Love.

Alfredo and Salvatore

       Salvatore (nickname Toto), a little kid stayed with his mother and little sister who the father was absent in life due to World War II. His friendship with Alfredo started in the cinema, as Toto always requested Alfredo to give him the deleted scene film as his collection. Alfredo did not like Toto and always forbid Toto from the projection room at first, but eventually letting him in to watch film from the projection room and taught him how to control the projectors. Other than his school friends, Toto spent most of his time in the projection room with Alfredo. He learned not only how to control the film projectors, but also life lessons from Alfredo as a father figure. Alfredo on the other hand, also treated Toto like his son.

       Alfredo served as a substitute paternal-attachment figure to Toto. The strong attachment between Toto and Alfredo provided Toto a secure base to explore the world (Bowlby, 1988; Kochanska, Coy & Murray, 2001). Alfredo always gave his wise words to Toto whenever Toto faced with problem: the challenges to be a only person in the town to control the film projectors as a kid, the courage to love and be loved during teenage, the responsibilities as an adult man to protect the country, and at the end, the courage to leave from comfort zone to pursue higher goal and dream.

       Toto had a simple dream: the passion to film and be a film projectionist was sufficient for him. However, as a father figure, Alfredo realized Toto's potential and encouraged him not to get settled and stop the passion by being just a film projectionist who spends the rest of the life in the projection room of cinema in a small village, but learn more outside the village to embrace the passion to film. There was one scene that caught my eyes about Alfredo's fatherly love to Toto, the goodbye-scene at the platform where Alfredo had the last word for Toto and asked him never come back to Giancaldo.

I believed that it was hard for both Alfredo and Toto, with the close relationship, to separate. In order to make Toto feel less reluctant to the place (or perhaps to Alfredo), Alfredo used hard words and in certain level chase away Toto to get on the train to leave the village and never come back again. Maybe at that moment Toto was sad and could not understand why Alfredo would treat him that way, but at the end of the movie, he understood that, that was Alfredo's fatherly love towards him to help him became better man with higher achievement.

       Toto definitely loves and treasures his relationship with Alfredo, as a teacher, a friend, a father. He listened to Alfredo, pursued their dream and passion by becoming a successful and famous film director. Without the secure attachment which allowed him to explore the world individually, his life story would probably be different.





ReferencesBowlby, J. (1988). A Secure Base: Parent-Child Attachment and Healthy Human Development. Tavistock professional book. London: Routledge.

Kochanska, G., Coy, K. C., & Murray, K. T. (2001). The development of self-regulation in the first four years of life. Child Development, 72(4), 1091-1111.

Pictures from Googlehttps://www.google.com/search?q=cinema+paradiso&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=667&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjCw5O1rrjKAhVQGo4KHY3fBegQ_AUIBygC#tbm=isch&q=cinema+paradiso+toto+kid+adult&imgrc=PafVifUXK8w39M%3A

https://www.google.com/search?q=cinema+paradiso&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=667&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjCw5O1rrjKAhVQGo4KHY3fBegQ_AUIBygC#tbm=isch&q=cinema+paradiso+toto+kid+adult&imgrc=Tc5Er9PvtB5vkM%3A