In this episode of Welcome To The Party Pal, hosts Mitch Lucas and Michael Shields explore the 1963 Italian surrealist comedy-drama film directed by Federico Fellini, 8 1⁄2. It stars Marcello Mastroianni as Guido Anselmi, a famous Italian film director who suffers from stifled creativity as he attempts to direct an epic science fiction film. 8 1⁄2 is shot in black and white by cinematographer Gianni Di Venanzo and features a captivating soundtrack by Nino Rota. The film classic won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Costume Design (black-and-white). It was among the top 10 on BFI's The Top 50 Greatest Films of All Time list, ranked third in a 2002 poll of film directors conducted by the British Film Institute, and is widely hailed as one of the most compelling pieces of art about crafting art ever birthed. In this episode Mitch and Michael debate on what makes 81⁄2 so special and profoundly influential while exploring the transfixing themes present in the film regarding the nature of cinema and the purpose of filmmaking, artistic authenticity / purity, struggling with mortality, the search for the ideal life partner, and more.

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