The Best of Youth — Ending Explained

"The Best of Youth" is a narrative defined by key turning points that irrevocably alter the lives of the Carati family. The initial catalyst is the brothers' attempt to liberate Giorgia from a psychiatric hospital. When this fails and she is recaptured, the once-united brothers split: Nicola continues a journey of exploration, while a guilt-ridden Matteo joins the army, a decision that seals his path toward rigidity and emotional isolation.

A major hidden meaning that becomes clear over time is the profound impact of this initial failure on Matteo. It is the original wound that never heals, informing his inability to form lasting relationships and his deep-seated anger. His affair with Mirella, a beacon of hope, ends because he cannot escape his own self-loathing. The film's most shocking twist is Matteo's suicide on New Year's Eve. Having pushed Mirella away and feeling utterly disconnected even during a family gathering, he jumps from his apartment balcony. This act is the tragic, inevitable endpoint of his character arc—a man who could not find a way to live in an imperfect world.

Another significant plot turn is Giulia's radicalization. Her transformation from an idealistic student into a member of the Red Brigades, leading her to abandon Nicola and their daughter Sara, highlights the destructive power of ideology. Nicola makes the painful choice years later to help the police capture her, not out of revenge, but to prevent her from causing more harm and to save her from herself, a decision that underscores his complex morality. The ending of the film reveals the full circle of the family's journey. Nicola, years after Matteo's death, discovers through a photograph that Matteo had a son with Mirella. He seeks them out, bringing this new child, Andrea, into the family. This discovery provides a measure of healing, especially for the grieving mother, Adriana. The final scene shows Andrea, now a young man, at the North Cape, completing the journey his father and uncle abandoned decades earlier. This act is not just a fulfillment of a youthful dream, but a symbol of hope, continuity, and the idea that the 'best of youth' is a recurring promise passed from one generation to the next, capable of redeeming the tragedies of the past.

While the film's narrative is largely straightforward, certain elements, particularly concerning the character of Matteo, invite alternative readings.

Matteo's Inner Conflict: The primary interpretation of Matteo's torment is his inability to reconcile his rigid idealism with a flawed world. His suicide is seen as the tragic culmination of a life of emotional repression and perceived failures. However, some viewers and critics have debated the unspoken source of his deep-seated anger and alienation. One interpretation suggests that Matteo is grappling with repressed homosexuality. This reading points to his discomfort with intimacy, his violent outbursts, his inability to connect with women who love him (like Mirella), and his choice of hyper-masculine, rigidly structured environments like the army and the police as a way to suppress his true nature. While never explicitly stated, this interpretation offers a potential underlying reason for his profound and lifelong sense of being an outsider.

The Ending as a Reconciliation with the Past: The film's ending, with Matteo's son Andrea completing the journey to the North Cape, is generally seen as a hopeful symbol of generational healing. An alternative reading views it less as a simple happy ending and more as a complex reconciliation. It suggests that the 'best of youth' is not a single generation, but an ongoing cycle. Andrea's journey isn't just about fulfilling his father's dream, but about understanding and integrating his father's troubled legacy. He is free to experience the journey's idealism precisely because Nicola and the rest of the family have grappled with the pain of the past, suggesting that true progress comes from confronting history, not repeating or ignoring it.