The Agony and the Ecstasy - Prologue

Extract from a 12-minute documentary about the sculptures by Michelangelo Buonarroti: from the Battle of the Centaurs, crafted when the artist was a teenager, to the Pietà Rondanini, left unfinished beside the bed in which he died at the age of 89 (18 February 1564). This short film was meant as an introduction to the 1965 movie “The Agony and the Ecstasy“, which tells the story of Michelangelo’s struggle with the challenging decoration of the Sistine Chapel, a work commissioned by Pope Julius II at which the sculptor, now turned painter, attended from 1508 to 1512. With a soundtrack by an early Jerry Goldsmith, this is a small jewel in its own right, perfectly in tune with the powerful and terrible majesty of Michelangelo’s work. Written and directed by Vincenzo Labella and shot by Piero Portalupi.