Most people hear "six hours long" and immediately bail. I get it. We live in an era of TikTok-fried attention spans where a three-minute trailer feels like a commitment. But honestly, The Best of Youth (or La meglio gioventù) is the only film I’ve ever watched where, after 360 minutes, I actually wanted more time.
It’s not just a movie. It’s a life.
Actually, it’s several lives.
Originally produced for Italian television by director Marco Tullio Giordana, it eventually found its way into theaters and won the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes. Since then, it’s become this legendary "if you know, you know" masterpiece among cinephiles. It follows the Carati family from 1966 all the way to 2003. You watch two brothers, Nicola and Matteo, grow from idealistic students into men shaped—and sometimes broken—by the messy, violent, and beautiful history of Italy.
The Secret Heart of The Best of Youth: Nicola and Matteo
If you’ve ever had a sibling, you know that weird mix of shared DNA and totally divergent souls. That’s the engine of this film.
Nicola (Luigi Lo Cascio) is the empathetic one. He’s a medical student who eventually becomes a psychiatrist. He’s the kind of guy who wants to fix the world by listening to it. Then you have Matteo (Alessio Boni). Matteo is... a lot. He’s handsome, brilliant, and deeply, painfully volatile. He’s a literature student who drops out to join the police, seemingly as a way to impose order on a mind that feels chaotic.
Their paths diverge because of a girl named Giorgia.
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She’s a young patient they try to "rescue" from a brutal mental asylum in the late 60s. The plan goes sideways. It’s a failure that haunts both of them for decades. Nicola responds by dedicating his life to reforming the psychiatric system. Matteo responds by retreating into the rigid discipline of the army and later the police force.
It’s a classic "sliding doors" moment, but it feels earned, not scripted.
Why the Six-Hour Runtime Isn't Actually a Problem
People worry about the length. Don't.
Roger Ebert once said that no good movie is too long, and no bad movie is short enough. He was talking about The Best of Youth when he said he "dropped outside of time" while watching it. Because the film was originally a miniseries, it has this novelistic pace. You aren't rushing to a climax. You're just living with these people.
You see the big stuff, sure.
The 1966 flood in Florence.
The rise of the Red Brigades.
The assassination of Judge Falcone.
The 1982 World Cup.
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But the "big history" is always secondary to the "small history." You care about the dinner table arguments. You care about Nicola’s complicated relationship with Giulia, who drifts into radicalism and eventually domestic terrorism. You care about the way their mother, Adriana, slowly ages. By the four-hour mark, you aren't watching actors; you're checking in on old friends.
The Women Who Ground the Story
While it’s often framed as a "brother story," the women in The Best of Youth are the ones who actually keep the narrative from floating off into melodrama.
- Giulia (Sonia Bergamasco): She is the most tragic figure in many ways. A gifted pianist who becomes so consumed by political ideology that she leaves her family behind. Her scenes with Nicola are some of the most gut-wrenching because they love each other, but they inhabit different realities.
- Mirella (Maya Sansa): A photographer who meets Matteo in a café. She represents the life he could have had if he wasn't so intent on punishing himself.
- Giorgia (Jasmine Trinca): She barely speaks, yet her presence is the moral compass of the entire film. She is the physical manifestation of Italy’s "forgotten" youth.
Dealing With the "Matteo" Question
There is a moment in the middle of the film—I won't spoil the specifics—that changes everything. It’s a shock that feels inevitable in hindsight.
Many viewers find Matteo frustrating. He’s a guy who pushes away everyone who loves him. He’s "a stranger to himself," as one critic put it. But his character is a brilliant critique of a certain kind of Italian masculinity—the soldier/policeman who uses authority as a shield against his own sensitivity.
If Nicola is the "best of youth" because he remains open to the world, Matteo is the "best of youth" that gets crushed by it.
How to Actually Watch It Today
You can’t just "throw this on" while scrolling your phone. You’ll miss the subtle shifts in the actors’ faces as the decades pile up.
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Kinda funny thing: the movie was shot on Super 16mm. It has this grainy, warm, lived-in look that makes it feel like a family photo album come to life. If you’re looking for a high-gloss Hollywood epic, this isn't it. It’s tactile. You can practically smell the cigarettes and the old library books.
Here is the move:
Break it into two three-hour sessions. Most Blu-ray releases or streaming versions have a natural midpoint. Watch Part 1 on a Friday night and Part 2 on Saturday.
Actionable Insights for Your First Viewing:
- Don't Google the Plot: The "surprises" in this film aren't twists in the Sixth Sense way. They are life events. Let them happen to you as they happen to the characters.
- Pay Attention to the Music: There’s a recurring piano theme and use of Georges Delerue’s music (specifically from Jules and Jim) that will absolutely wreck you by the end.
- Watch the Backgrounds: The film does a masterful job of showing Italy’s transformation from a post-war struggling nation to a modern European power through the furniture, the cars, and the clothes.
When the credits finally roll, you’ll feel a weird sense of grief. It’s the same feeling you get when you finish a 1,000-page novel. You’ve lived through forty years in a few hours, and suddenly, the real world feels a bit too quiet.
The Best of Youth teaches you that life isn't about the "destination" or some grand purpose. It’s just a series of rooms we walk through with people we love, trying our best not to break too many things along the way.
Find the longest version you can. Sit down. Let it wash over you. It's the best investment of six hours you'll ever make.
Next Steps for the Interested Viewer:
- Locate the 400-minute "Complete Saga" version (often split into two parts on streaming platforms).
- Search for the Criterion Collection or Cohen Media Group editions for the best visual quality, as the Super 16mm grain can look muddy on low-bitrate streams.
- Prepare for a heavy emotional experience by clearing your schedule; this is not a film meant for "background noise."