decadence and excess

His films obsessively chronicle the moral and physical decay of aristocratic families drowning in luxury and corruption, most powerfully in 'The Leopard' and 'Death in Venice'.

He captures the intoxicating spectacle and spiritual emptiness of decadent Rome and high society through surreal, baroque imagery in films like 'La Dolce Vita' and '8½'.

His stylish thrillers explore the obsessive pursuit of wealth, beauty, and power among the morally corrupt elite, with visual excess mirroring his characters' psychological unraveling.