La Dolce Vita

 

Interview with Max Malatesta

 

“Stop him! Stop him before it's too late!” These were reportedly the haunting words of Laura Betti, actress and friend of Pasolini, which she addressed with prophetic foresight to his colleague David Grieco while Pasolini that night allegedly just sat at the same table in silence, smiling. Shortly after, Pier Paolo Pasolini was murdered in 1975. How does this fit into your La Dolce Vita photo spread?

After Pasolini´s murder Giulio Andreotti, head of the Democrazia Cristiana (DC) party said: “Pasolini was looking for his death,”  - voicing what many of my compatriots were thinking back then. Everyone hated him in some way. Communists and fascists, students as well as capitalists. Atheists and Catholics.
In real life I am an actor. And of course, for any Italian actor or filmmaker, Pier Paolo Pasolini is an absolute icon that triggers strong emotions. For that it was kind of a revelation for me when my friend told me that he owns the very Alfa Romeo 2000 GT Pasolini was supposedly murdered with in 1975 and that he wanted to give it to me for a few photos. The Alfa Romeo is the symbol of the Italian Dolce Vita - still today, worldwide.
Many, including myself, love this car - but when I think of Pasolini, this symbol takes on a completely different shift. It's this contrast between love and death, rich and poor - one of, if not Pasolini's main themes. In the story we tried to play with these symbols

What guided you in the shoot photographically?

I could elaborate on this endlessly, but the bottom line is: A good picture has a resonance in the soul. You don't really know why you love a particular image. But you love it. Dreams speak the same language.
I take pictures to build a bridge between these worlds. If you succeed, you can share that resonance with others and the image starts to have a life of its own. It's almost magical, happens rather rarely, but you have to keep trying.