Professor Cicali Helps Student Discover Fellini’s Impact on American Cinema

Olivia Luongo (C’21)

Government Major; Italian and History Minor

Most of the humanities classes that I have taken at Georgetown have been through the Italian Department, as I am an Italian minor. This past semester I had the opportunity to take Italian Cinema with Professor Cicali, and this class is one of the best classes I have taken during my time at Georgetown. This class gave me the opportunity to watch classic movies, such as La Dolce Vita, that I had wanted to watch for years but never set aside the time to watch. I also think that taking this class helped me understand modern American films better, as well. For example, we discussed the influence on Italian movies and directors, such as Federico Fellini, on American cinema. Something that stuck out to me about this class was how every film we watched, no matter how old it was, the time in which it was set, or the fact that it took place in Italy, contained messages that I have seen in modern American movies and television shows. Since we had short written assignments about the movies we watched, this class helped me approach film more critically than when I watch movies for leisure, which has helped me gain a new appreciation for film. Another reason why I loved this class so much was Professor Cicali. I have taken multiple classes with Professor Cicali, and he is always so engaging and can make any topic interesting. Because our class was small, we were able to have a rich discussion every class and all students were able to contribute their ideas. I have had such a great experience with the humanities at Georgetown through my Italian classes.