8 1/2

The title points to Federico Fellini's count of his own films up to that point, with some earlier co-directed or shorter work counted as half. The 1963 film turns that self-reference into the story of Guido Anselmi, a blocked director played by Marcello Mastroianni.

Partly, but the unfinished science-fiction project is mainly a pressure point for Guido's creative crisis. The huge launch-pad set in 8 1/2 becomes a symbol of a film that has grown too large for its director to explain.

The key figures include Luisa, played by Anouk Aimee, Claudia, played by Claudia Cardinale, and Carla, played by Sandra Milo. Fellini mixes Guido's marriage, affairs, childhood memories, and fantasies instead of keeping them in separate realistic scenes.

Yes. Federico Fellini's 8 1/2 won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and it also won for black-and-white costume design.