I watched "Buongiorno, Notte" in the theater one day ago (and as Italian Cinema is one of my special interests of high importance, I couldn't miss it) and it took my breath away. If a film handles with political history in a political way, it very often ends up as precocious and dry intellectual mathematics but Bellocchio's film is a whole different thing to recept. A wonderful quote by German filmmaker Roland Klick came to my mind about humanistic reduction in cinema - I shall post it within the next days (as well as the first DVD-Index which I intended to give to you as some sort of Christmas gift ) and that cinema should move away social critism and politics to look at the process in the people themselves - because it's the motor of it all. Though the film gave it all an additional spiritual dimension, this was certainly the thing that impressed me most because Belloccio substituted all the usual impressions of similar films through the individual state and its strength. If I will ever be a filmmaker as I intend to, the consequence of that point of view would definitely be one of my prior "rules". Not to mention the amazing formalism which was, in way, really vivid and relaxed. And the use of the soundtrack, not only of the Pink Floyd piece but also that choir... It gave me the chills...Overall, possibly the last addition of my 2007's favourites (still awaiting "Eastern Promises"). The only thing that flawed the film really was the fact that of those five (or six?) protagonists, the only one who feels with Moro and regret the deed, is the only woman. Certainly. Women are more emotional than men. That was a bit patriarchal and annoying, imo. Even though the script moves around Chiara's (Maya Sansa) Character very deferently. And maybe, some cliches weren't bypassed cleverly enough but in the small, artificial universe in Bellocchio created in this flat, such faults aren't too obvious between characters moving like their own ghosts around each other - without being alienated in a common way. (22 out of 25 - 9/10)

It isn't necessary to know much about the historical / political background but I would've been grateful if so.

EDIT: Thanks for moving the thread, arsaib. Now, all posts are together and I realize that my post (and reception fo the film) has much in common with yours.