New 4K digital restoration by the Film Foundation, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
New visual essay by : : kogonada
New interview with filmmaker Lina Wertmüller, who worked as assistant director on the film
Scholar David Forgacs discusses the period in Italy’s history when the film was made
New interview with Italian film journalist Antonello Sarno about the outlandish fashions seen in the film
Audio interview with actor Marcello Mastroianni from the early 1960s, conducted by film historian Gideon Bachmann
Felliniana, a presentation of ephemera related to La dolce vita from the collection of Don Young
PLUS: An essay by critic Gary Giddins
Quote:
The biggest hit from the most popular Italian filmmaker of all time, La dolce vita rocketed Federico Fellini to international mainstream success—ironically, by offering a damning critique of the culture of stardom. A look at the darkness beneath the seductive lifestyles of Rome’s rich and glamorous, the film follows a notorious celebrity journalist—played by a sublimely cool Marcello Mastroianni—during a hectic week spent on the peripheries of the spotlight. This mordant picture was an incisive commentary on the deepening decadence of the European 1960s, and it provided a prescient glimpse of just how gossip- and fame-obsessed our society would become
Criterion Corner: Those folks at Criterion are up to their old tricks, pushing out gems on DVD and Blu-ray that collectors simply can’t live without. Down the road, we’ve learned that the company has slated David Lynch’s Mulholland Dr., the 2001 Hollywood-set mystery that actually started life as a pilot for a TV series. The film deals with an aspiring actress, an amnesiac woman, a film director, and a lesbian liaison and stars Naomi Watts, Laura Elena Harring, Robert Forster and Justin Theroux. This will be a nice companion piece to Criterion’s upcoming Eraserhead. Also due from the company is Terry Gilliam’s fantasy Time Bandits, available in a mega-deluxe edition. Just licensed for future release is Federico Fellini’s 1960 masterpiece La Dolce Vita with Marcello Mastroianni and Anita Ekberg. This will make a nice companion with The Great Beauty, the recent Oscar winner inspired by La Dolce Vita.