Movie review: 'The Great Beauty' -- 3 stars

"The Great Beauty" finds Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino channeling Federico Fellini and other masterful chroniclers of the surreal, absurd and unrelentingly beautiful Roman cityscape.

The impressionistic film is centered on Jep Gambardella (Toni Servillo), a 65-year-old writer who experiences many facets of the city over the course of heady nights and beautiful days.

It's often said that Rome is essentially a living history museum, with the ancient and modern worlds colliding on its streets. Sorrentino's sweeping camera captures that unique feel, through long takes and lush imagery that finds immanence everywhere it looks.

This isn't a movie for everyone. It's very Italian, with its jabs at the national id, and it's filled with abstract constructions. Yet the grand tradition of city symphonies, films tailored to celebrate the mood and feeling of their urban settings, lives on here.

"The Great Beauty"
Directed by Paolo Sorrentino
Starring Toni Servillo
Not Rated
Playing at Lincoln Plaza