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What's the point of the short movie at the end


At the end of the movie Gigi shows the villagers a humorous black-and-white short about the erection of a sign. Could someone please explain the joke to me?

Thanks.

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I may be looking too much into it, but I think the short film was Gigi's symbolic way to bury the hatchet with his brother. The sign was a two permitted directions sign, in my interpretation meaning the two paths Gigi’s destiny could’ve taken him during the film. Staying in Germany with Jo becoming a director (the path which was hijacked by his brother), or going back to Solino and marry Ada (which ended up happening). Then a funeral procession goes the opposite direction of both those paths and everyone attending it kicks the sign threatening its stability, representing the ups and downs in their past that threatened their (Gigi’s and his brother’s) relationship. It’s a funeral and it’s going the opposite way, so it’s like saying “these problems are part of the past, are over. We both ended up well, so let’s lay them to rest”. The same question keeps popping up in the intertitles: “Will it stand?”. Will the sign stand? Will their relationship stand after all those issues and blows? We get our answer when the short film is over and Gigi and his brother walk towards each other and embrace. To the villagers it’s probably just a humorous little film about angry/sad people taking out their frustration on a poor innocent worker trying to erect a sign , but for them is something deeper. Gigi has just pardoned his brother.

I don’t know if I’m overreaching, nevertheless this was my understanding of it. I certainly would like to hear other people’s take on it, but I couldn’t find any discussion about it online.

Language! The thing that means stuff.

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