How Does Camerini Create A Sense Of The Upper Class

In Il Signor Max, the upper class are portrayed by Camerini in a way that is unflattering and emphasizes class difference. The upper class are seen as frivolous people who live their lives looking for the next bit of entertainment. For example, when Paola and Max officially meet each other, it is at a dance where everyone is supposed to wear these silly hats. Camerini uses these hats to gently make fun of the aristocrats by their silly appearance and by their need to have these kind of party favours to make a dance (that the middle class, such as Gianni, would find very exciting) more entertaining. This class difference is further emphasized by the difference in settings. The scenes with the upper class are all shot in rooms with extravagant
decorations and architecture whereas the home of Uncle Pietro is far more simple. Additionally the OND hall, has a distinct Roman architecture (such as the columns) which is both austere and evokes an authentic Italian atmosphere. Paola and the other aristocrats are also characterized through their dialogue as people with little substance. The aristocrats are constantly chatting about people that they know and who are related to so-and-so. Camerini uses this dialogue to alienate the audience from the upper class (as we do not know who they are talking about) and give the impression that they have nothing better to do than talk about other people.
In The Children Are Watching Us, the upper class are characterized similarly to the upper class in Camerini’s film.
Prico’s family encounters the upper class during their vacation in Alassio and we are introduced to Dada and her group of male friends who are very similar to Paola’s travelling crew in Il Signor Max. The upper class are only seen in the setting of the resort town and are therefore associated with the leisure and luxury of the resort. Furthermore, De Sica accentuates the lack of morality within the upper class through the character development of Dada who has only befriended Nina so that her friend Mimi can have a chance to seduce her. Of course the aristocrats know that Nina is married but the point that De Sica makes is that they do not care or respect the sanctity of marriage. During the scene at the restaurant in Alassio, De Sica uses dialogue in the same way as Camerini to alienate the audience and show the difference between common folk and the upper class. The entire restaurant is chatting with each other about the people they know which alienates the audience because their conversations are about people we do not
know.
However, Camerini and De Sica use their unflattering characterization of the upper class to send different messages. For Camerini, this is to emphasize the “otherness” of the upper class which is further accentuated by the American influences of the upper class. In Il Signor Max, the aristocrats at times drink foreign alcohol (such as whiskey), talk about American films, and even speak in English. Camerini does this to emphasize not only how different they are from the middle class but how un-Italian they were during a time when fascism was trying to create the Italian identity. Yet this is not the purpose of De Sica’s portrayal of the upper class. Indeed, the scene in the restaurant in Alassio is one of the rare mention of fascist ideas in the film. The Bolognese man becomes upset by the rest of the restaurant taunting him and reverts back to the Bolognese dialect to which everyone yells “No dialect!” The significance of this is that unlike in Il Signor Max where the upper class are distinguished as anti-fascist, here we see that they have at least adopted the fascist practice of Standard Italian and are therefore a part of fascist society. In the case of De Sica, the immorality of the upper class is more contingent on the moral decay of fascist society rather than a comment on specific or unique shortcomings of the upper class.
The Children Are Watching Us does not specifically criticize one social group, as Camerini does in Il Signor Max, because De Sica is trying to make a statement about the moral decay of fascist society as a whole.
The deteriorating effects of fascism on the upper class, the familial unit, and gender roles have been discussed earlier in the paper. However, De Sica also makes a comment on the fascist ideals of collectivity by emphasizing the lack of unity within Prico’s community. For example, the neighbors, especially Mrs. Resta, are often seen gossiping about Andrea and Nina. Instead of pulling together to help this family in crisis, they seem to take some kind of pleasure in discussing the family’s issues. This is further emphasized by the set-up of scenes where the neighbors are on one side and the members of Prico’s family, such as when Prico is brought home to his mother after running away, that visually show the division within the community. Additionally, the gossiping neighbors function as a representative of the oppressive nature of fascism and how the pressure of fascist ideals are a destructive force. The discord in the community is also accentuated in the scene where the tenants of the apartment building break out into an argument over something as petty as how often people should use the elevator. De Sica uses the disharmony within the community to once again undermine fascist ideals and highlight the deterioration of fascist
society.
The final scene of The Children Are Watching Us is the culmination of De Sica’s portrayal of fascist society where Prico’s rejection of his mother is representative of a rejection of fascism. Fascism in the film is not visually represented in the film, instead we learn about fascist society by the behaviours of the characters just as Prico does. What Prico has learnt is that the adult world (the fascist world) is harsh and lacking in morality which is why, when his mother comes to visit him after Andrea’s suicide, he refuses to be comforted by her and walks away from Nina and the fascist world that has produced her behaviour. De Sica uses close-ups during the scene to evoke the emotions of the audience and make this poignant scene that much more powerful. These close-ups are juxtaposed by De Sica’s long shots. The long shots accentuate the relation between characters and space. Specifically, the wide shot where Prico walks away and becomes smaller and smaller as the distance between him and his mother grows larger. This physical distance between Nina and Prico is representative of the child’s emotional distance from his impulsive mother. The room in which this scene takes place is cavernous due to the minimal furniture and high ceilings which accentuates the physical distance between both characters and emphasizes Prico’s isolation/rejection of the outside world. The conclusion of the film reinforces De Sica’s message of the deterioration of fascist society as Prico, a child, has a better understanding of morals than his mother which is why he ultimately renounces his relationship to Nina.
In Il Signor Max, the scene on the train where Gianni realizes that he does not belong with the upper class is a pivotal moment in Camerini’s attempt to reinforce fascist values. The scene begins with the use of the devices, such as dialogue and American references, which helped Camerini create his negative portrayal of the upper class that were discussed previously in the paper. As the aristocrats chat about people, Camerini employs a close-up of Gianni to emphasize his confused expression and lack of participation in the conversation. Furthermore, the use of the soft focus during this close-up emphasizes his exclusion from the conversation. As the camera fades out, it is clear that Gianni is beginning to understand that he does not belong with the upper class. Yet, as the film fades in we see that Gianni is playing bridge with the aristocrats until the aristocrats become fed up with Gianni’s “odd” way of playing the game and replace him with another player. This is the first scene where Gianni questions the upper class, because he has followed the instructions for the bridge manual but the aristocrats insist that he is playing it wrong. As he leaves the table, Gianni is clearly annoyed, which can be seen through his facial expression and body language, by their so-called rules. Of even more significance is that instead of ordering a whiskey, the preferred drink of the aristocrats which has become symbolic of the lack of Italian authenticity amongst the upper class, Gianni orders a Fernet. By ordering a traditionally Italian drink, Camerini shows how Gianni has realized that he does not belong in the upper class and, more importantly, that he would rather be a member of the authentically Italian middle class. By showing Gianni’s change of heart, Camerini is emphasizing the values of the middle class and representing the fascist ideals of the time.
In conclusion, The Children Are Watching Us and Il Signor Max are both about fascist ideals and values, however while one film seeks to expose the negative affects fascism had on society, the other film seeks to reinforces these ideals on its audience. Although the films share some similarities such as the characterization of the upper class and the use of a protagonist to expose the flaws of Italian society, their messages are clearly quite different. De Sica uses the characterization of the upper class, the portrayal of gender roles, the fascist familial unit, and fascist society as a whole, a child protagonist, and tragedy to show the moral decay of Italian society as a result of fascism. On the other hand, Camerini uses his portrayal of the upper class to highlight the values of the middle class, the ideological transformation of the protagonist, and comedy to reinforce the values of the ideal fascist citizens. Although, the films have opposing messages they can both be useful to a historical understanding of these time periods. Camerini’s film highlights the societal ideals that the fascist regime were campaigning for and their opinion of the upper class. De Sica’s film is historically significant because it shows how, in the early 1940s, Italian’s may have begun to think about the ramifications of fascist ideals on society.