Freely inspired by Giacomo Casanova’s Histoire de ma vie, this was Federico Fellini’s first film based on an 18th Century character. Il Casanova di Federico Fellini is classic Fellini, with an almost maniacal attention to the surreality of certain details, care taken over the settings, situations and totally unreal scenes. Venice itself appears different, no longer a setting of stones and water, but more like papier-mâché. The masked balls where Casanova strikes and the 18th Century Baroque setting gave Fellini plenty of scope to create grotesque and dry heartless moments, where the world’s most famous seducer often ends up appearing ridiculous.