Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.5

I fidanzati Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 17, 2025

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of the Il posto + I fidanzati double feature set from Radiance Films.

Ermanno Olmi never seemed to reach the stratospheric heights of some other Italian directors of his same general generation, and in fact it's arguable that Olmi is chiefly remembered today for mainly one film, The Tree of Wooden Clogs (the link points to the Region A release from Criterion, though the film was also released by Arrow Video for Region B in an edition I personally preferred for its warmer color timing). Radiance is perhaps aiding and abetting a wider appreciation of Olmi's not exactly expansive but still often quite arresting filmography by offering Olmi's first two purely narrative films (1959's Time Stood Still toed a semi-documentarian line, though it's probably best approached as a narrative film when all the dust and/or snow has settled). Both of the stories in the veritable double feature might be thought of as "small", but they both show Olmi's rather interesting "combo platter" of Neorealism and more "stylized" presentational aspects, and both have some genuine emotion suffusing their "simple" narratives. As is discussed in some of the interesting supplements included on each disc in this double feature, both Il posto and I fidanzati offer really interesting examples of Olmi "breaking free" of his former work as a documentarian, though both films still have definite cinema verité aspects.

The opening of I fidanzati could reasonably have been seen back in the day as perhaps another of Olmi's "industrial documentaries", maybe showing in this case a dance hall utilized by power plant employees (Olmi's early filmmaking often revolved around his work for Edison Volta). The people shown dancing in a community hall may not in fact be joined by a common employer, and many of them look to be of retirement age anyway, but among the group new arrivals Giovanni (Carlo Cabrini) and Liliana (Anna Canzi) stand out, and not just because of their relative youth. The two seem to be a couple, and yet there's something going on that is apparently keeping them from speaking to each other, let alone traipsing about the dance floor together.

I fidanzati sees Olmi moving away rather fascinatingly from his documentarian roots, no matter what the verité feel of the opening vignette (and, frankly, a lot of the rest of this film) may seem to be offering. That change is perhaps most evident in some of the really compelling editing the film offers, which skips back and forth between memories and the dance hall. A portrait of a "romance" under duress from the dreaded scourge of "long distance" finally emerges, but as some of the supplements on this disc get into, what may be of just as much interest is Olmi's rather distinctive use of locations which in and of themselves suggest a rural Italy becoming rapidly industrialized.

I fidanzati Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

I fidanzati is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Radiance Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Radiance sent check discs for purposes of this review, and so I'm not privy to any verbiage that may be contained in an insert booklet, but the actual presentation begins with some prefatory text cards offering the following information:

This 4K restoration of I fidanzati was performed by the Cineteca di Bologna Foundation based on film negatives and soundtracks provided by Titanus at the L'Immagine Ritrovata laboratories with funding from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

This is, like Il posto, a really gorgeously organic looking transfer that again like its sibling in this set can admittedly have a pretty heavy grain field at times, but which nonetheless offers some really secure detail levels throughout. There is a bit of understandable ebbing in clarity during a few opticals along the way (including the opening credits in the dance hall), but on the whole, things are sharp and precise looking. Some of the location photography in particular is quite striking, including the unusual salt mining operation featured (see screenshot 2, and note the generally excellent fine detail levels on the little "pyramids" of salt). This presentation may strike some as being just a bit on the dark side, much like Il posto, and this presentation may have just a bit more variance in contrast levels than the other film displays. There is some very minor age related wear and tear that can be spotted in the form of pretty miniscule flecks.

I fidanzati Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

I fidanzati features LPCM 2.0 Mono audio in the original Italian. This is a somewhat more varied sound design than the one offered in Il posto, including from the veritable get go with the fun piano and accordion music accompanying the dancers. The ping ponging between time frames allows for some rather interesting sound editing choices (note, for example, how the dance hall music spills over into the first flashback). Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

I fidanzati Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Lamberto Caimi (HD; 10:41) features the film's director of photography. Caimi is also featured in a supplement on the other disc in this set. Subtitled in English.


• Richard Dyer (HD; 22:57) offers an overview of the film by the academic and Italian film expert. There's a companion piece by Dyer on the other disc in this set.


• Ehsan Khoshbakht (HD; 16:23) gives some background on Olmi's early work as a documentarian.

I fidanzati Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I fidanzati may frankly not have the overall impact that Il posto does, but in its own way it's a very interesting film. Olmi really toys with structure and editing here in a way that he hadn't before, and if those two elements are rather progressive, the actual narrative may come of as a bit timeworn. Technical merits are solid and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.