La dolce vita

Fellini's La dolce vita has been a phenomenon since before it was made, a scandal in the making and on release and a reference point ever since.

Much of what made it notorious was its incorporation of real people, events and lifestyles, making it a documentation of its time.

It uses performance, camera movement, editing and music to produce a striking aesthetic mix of energy and listlessness, of exuberance and despair.

Richard Dyer's study considers each of these aspects of the film - phenomenon, document, aesthetic - and argues that they are connected.