"Grazia", signori: Paolo Sorrentino released a film about the burden of power
Russian cinemas have begun showing the tragicomedy parable "Grace" by Paolo Sorrentino from the program of the Venice Film Festival in 2025. The classic of Italian cinema in this film reflects on the responsibility of the ruler for the lives and deaths of his subjects and how the personal life of the president can influence government decisions. Starring is Sorrentino's favorite actor Tony Servillo, who has already been called the best role of his career. Izvestia analyzes the meanings inherent in the film and comes to the conclusion that this quiet film can be considered the deepest in the successful career of the master.
President according to Paolo Sorrentino
If you were annoyed by Paolo Sorrentino's previous work "Parthenope" and at times it seemed that it already smacked of senile voyeurism (although the director is still only in his sixties), then you should definitely like "Grace". Laconic, strict, and subtle, this film may seem painfully slow and drawn out while watching, but its aftertaste is long and pleasant.
Instead of the spectacular attractions of Sorrentino's past paintings, this one offers unhurried philosophical reflections, sad discoveries about the essence of human nature and the structure of society, and, together with the main character, poses the ultimate questions of philosophy to the viewer, and in a completely non-banal way.
A shot from the movie "Grace"
The main character of "Grace" is the elderly Italian President De Santis, for whose role Tony Servillo won the international jury prize at the last Venice Film Festival. But this image is not political, even the name of the hero hints rather at the classic of Italian cinema Giuseppe De Santis. The president, the director, God — these images are, in fact, merged into one here. De Santis does not travel to NATO and UN sessions, does not call Trump, does not discuss Russia's participation in the biennale. Most of the time he is bored in his office, going over the memories of his wife, who died many years ago.
She loved him, he was sure of that. And she cheated on him, he knows that too. Obviously with someone from the inner circle. That person is still around somewhere. Maybe this is it? Or is he? Best friend? A subordinate? Who is it? De Santis is tormented by loneliness and jealousy. The end of his term is approaching. The president is tired. But it helps him not to give up his job that he is one of the best lawyers of his time, and his nickname Reinforced Concrete also did not appear by chance. He knows how to think, he knows how to make informed decisions, but his heart is not here, it is in the distant past, where his wife left her terrible riddle at parting. On the other hand, it's better to take your time with some things. Sorrentino puts into De Santis's mouth the most apt aphorism in the script: "Bureaucracy is not just slow, that's the whole point: to give people time to think properly."
The main issue of "Grace"
The plot of "Grace" focuses on the latest bill, which De Santis must either sign or reject before the end of his term. This is a permit for euthanasia in the country. For many years now, the president's daughter has been making changes to the draft with a working group, but De Santis still hasn't decided. His friend and influential ally Dad (by the way, he is black here) is categorically against it. Liberals, of course, are in favor. And De Santis is not just the president here, he is, as mentioned above, a kind of god. And the decision on euthanasia is not just a multi—page project. It outweighs all the current law, which, as we are reminded several times in the film, is placed on 2,046 pages, which, by the way, seems to be a cinephile reference to the corresponding film by Wong Kar-Wai, also philosophical, parableous and slow.
A shot from the movie "Grace"
"If I don't sign, I'm a tormentor, if I sign, I'm a murderer," the president muses.
To decide what to do with euthanasia, De Santis must deal with two clemency petitions. One is from a history teacher who "out of love" smothered his wife with dementia with a pillow (another homage to Michael Haneke's masterpiece "Love"). The second is from a woman who killed her sleeping husband. The president needs to find out all the details of these cases, meet with his family and deal with jealousy of his wife — and then, perhaps, he will determine the fate of the bill. Or he'll push him under the responsibility of the next president if he doesn't come up with something.
A ruler who does not have the answer to all questions, who can afford to doubt and listen to others, Sorrentino, creating an ultramodern entourage for his hero, of course, does not even try to achieve realism anyway. Everything here is conditional, except for the flow of thoughts and passions in the head and heart of De Santis — powerful and helpless, wise and naive. Sorrentino adds a touching irony here, introducing into the narrative, for example, the figure of a bodyguard (aka a guardian angel) who knows everything about his patron, even what he himself does not suspect. By pitting De Santis against eccentric freaks, as if they had looked in from more "loud" Sorrentino films.
A shot from the movie "Grace"
And yet, despite all the jokes and winks, "Grace" is a very serious film. There is a lot of silence in it, a lot of silence in front of the border where Life and Death meet each other, and that is where De Santis feels himself. Where there is both Grace and Mercy, both contained in the title of the painting. Following Okudzhava's lyrical hero, he could repeat: "I feel like the last god, the only one who knows how to forgive." But you can also punish, like Grace in Dogville, and for some reason her name also comes to mind while watching, although perhaps the whole point is that the whole cinematic world is celebrating Lars von Trier's 70th birthday this week. He also reflected on the relationship between Law and Love and created bizarre parables on this topic. And at some point, it suddenly becomes very important to us what decision De Santis will make, what he will leave not just to fictional Italy, but to all of us. Sorrentino suddenly hit a very delicate nerve. This makes me both happy and anxious.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
