Felini fans will debate forever, but《8½》will always be the Felini film I love to hate. I love its scene compositions and the hilarious characters, but I’ve always found it impossible to summon serious sympathy for the egocentric film director played so well by Marcelo Mastriani. It’s a complicated film, and it’s surreal, a movie you can’t possibly understand if you watch it just once. I would say 3 times is the minimum, where you can stop during the second viewing to check references and discuss nuances with other Felini geeks, and then watch itallow all those subtleties to wash over you.
Anyway, good on Wayne and Titleist for celebrating Italian wine via Felini, and for staging the event in this old mansion on Zhong Shan N Rd, one of the few private buildings left from an earlier era before skyscrapers subways, and the high-speed rail.
Taiwan’s love of Italian wine was very clear as wine afficianados, most younger, crowed into this complex space.
Winemakers and brand-reps were pouring Titleist’s entire portfolio of Italian wines, and many of them presented with extaordinary value for money (CP值)Taiwan’s foremost author of books on Italian wine culture, 陳匡民 (Chen Kuang Min) gave an impassioned introduction to the topic that has been her life’s work for decades, and then she led her tight group winding through the crowd to taste her favorites and tell their stories.
Tye building and the theme lent a unique (for Taipei) cafe-life tone to the entire tasting. Despite the heat, many sat on the covered terrace to enjoy wine and finger food.
I took pictures of my favorite wines, plus a wonderfully expressive grappa from Barolo.
