People are voting emotionally.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

A humble clerk (Marcello Mastroianni) courts a woman (Maria Schell) who night after night awaits for the return of her lover (Jean Marais).I am not a champion of this film, and I apologize for that. I know Visconti is a big name in Italian cinema, especially the neorealist movement. And I think he has made a fine film here. But it never fully caught my attention, and i have to just say it was good or maybe really good, but never quite great.In contrast, Dostoevsky was (or is) one of my favorite authors of all time. He so expertly captured the psychology of his subjects. And I am not sure that this was really portrayed here. Granted, "White Nights" is not one of his stories I am most familiar with, but I never really got a Dostoevsky feel out of this film.

To a naive viewer--knew nothing of Visconti--am familiar with Mastroianni and Schnell...this movie is remarkable mostly for keeping your interest up for an hour and a half with so little story and no live scenery. It is entirely shot on a smallish set that looks like a nightmare modern dystopia.Yes the story is believable if you wind it back 100 years or more to Dostoyevsky and the set looks like a bombed out St. Petersburg crossed with a Naples slum. The Story? Unrequitted love--Schnell is a poor girl of 18 or so whose grandmother pins her to her skirt to keep track of her. A new boarder rents a room from them and pays her attention. She falls in love and after he leaves and promises to come back in 1 year she waits at a bridge every night for his return. Meanwhile Mastroianni befriends her and falls in love with her... I won't tell the ending although you know something is going to happen unexpected it is the only thing that keeps you watching.I didn't really find anything egregious in this movie although I watch old movies for the live street scenes and the nostalgic time travel that permits...this had ZERO. The funky 50s wild sex toned dancing seems to have been a staple of the time have seen it in numerous European movies a big yawn. Every detail in this type of movie is significant the swinging door--Schnell may be open to Mastroianni's advances ad infinitum...The only thing out of place were the Coke and Esso ads...7.7 is too much praise not needed for this.... I give it a 6 for the opera/play like scenery. Could anyone stand to watch it twice once the surprise ending that keeps you watching is known? Not me.RECOMMEND ?

In a cold night, the lonely ordinary man Mario (Marcello Mastroianni) is wandering along the empty streets of Livorno after spending the day with the family of his employer. While crossing a bridge, Mario sees a beautiful woman crying and he starts a conversation with her. The reluctant Natalia (Maria Schell) finally accepts his companion to walk her home and they schedule to meet each other on the next day at the same place at 10:00 PM. The romantic and naive Natalia tells Mario that she is Slav and lives with her grandmother. They survive repairing fancy carpets and renting a room in their house. When an unknown tenant (Jean Marais) rents the room, Natalia immediately falls in love with him. However, the man asks for one year apart to raise enough money to get married with her and promising to return and meet her on the bridge where Mario met her in the previous night. She gives a letter to Mario to deliver to the stranger but Mario throws it away in the canal. On the next night, Natalia meets Mario by chance and they spend the snowing night together, dancing, chatting and drinking, and Mario falls in love with her; but while walking back home, the couple sees a man alone on the bridge."Le Notti Bianche" is one of the most beautiful romances I have ever seen. The melancholic, utopist and timeless love story is a different film from the genius Luchino Visconti, based on the novel by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, and was shot in magnificent sets that rebuilt a non- faithful quarter of Livorno in the Cinecittá in the opposite direction of the Italian Neo-Realism. The chemistry between Marcello Mastroianni in one of his best roles and the gorgeous and sweet Maria Schell with her delightful smile in the role of a dreamer is amazing and one of the greatest attractions of this lovely film. The haunting cinematography in black and white is comparable to the German Expressionism with the use of lighting and shadows. Last but not the least, the unforgettable music score of Nino Rota completes this stunning and unknown masterpiece. The DVD released in Brazil by Versátil Dstributor has restored images and perfect sound that highlight the wonderful cinematography. My vote is ten.Title (Brazil): "Noites Brancas" ("White Nights")

Luchino Visconti has created a film that tried to reflect reality as well as a dream. The premise is something right out of a dream, two people meet by chance on a bridge and then the man proceeds to try and court the women. In the beginning the film is set up with the man is a realist and the women is a dreamer. While this premise is quite interesting and has much potential it does fall short on the execution. This is mainly caused by huge tonal shifts that occur during the film. The story goes between reality and dream so suddenly and drastically that it becomes distracting. Many times it has aspects of dream and reality in the same scene and characters cycle through the dream vs reality banter many times. The narrative is consistently too melodramatic with characters overacting to situations. This becomes all the more distracting when the aesthetic of the film is both dream like and realistic. Le Notti Bianche has grand sets made replicating a whole section of a city that feels real. At the same time there is a background with clouds that never move and a full moon that never changes. While the film often has a hazy and washed out feeling it often will have a straight forward typical shot reverse shot or tracking shot as well. It just feels like an opportunity that was missed with an interesting premise with a clash between reality and dream that the narrative has problems synchronizing with the aesthetic. As always Marcello Mastroianni gives a wonderful and charismatic performance. Maria Schell as well shines in the film which is no easy task with such a one dimensional character but she makes it work and gives those looks into the camera that stops you in your tracks. Perhaps if you are more of a romantic you might be able to forgive some of the short comings a bit more since there are good performances and visuals in the film.