Benedetta: Film Review
I heard A LOT about Paul Verhoeven‘s Benedetta coming out of Cannes last year so I knew it was going to be wild but nothing could have prepared me for how bats**t this film is.
This biographical drama is set in the 17th century in Pescia, Italy. It is inspired by the true story of Benedetta Carlini (played by Virginie Efira), a nun who rose up the ranks of her convent and was exposed as a lesbian and condemned for having an illicit relationship with fellow nun, Sister Bartholomea (Daphne Patakia).
Benedetta is such an unexpected, chaotic trip! I came out of my screening at a loss for words and genuinely didn’t know what to write in my notes. I needed time to decompress and think about it, and to be honest, I’ve given it a while and I still don’t really know what to make of it. It is just so audacious, ludicrous and balls to the wall.
Before seeing it, I naively described this film as “the lesbian nun movie” and that turned out to be extremely reductive because there is so much else going on in Benedetta outside of the forbidden love affair. Benedetta seemingly has a mystical connection with Jesus, has visions or hallucinations involving him, and eventually receives stigmata. But are the markings real or did she fake them? That’s another storyline within the film but there’s also torture, suicide, the plague, and some sex and masturbation thrown in for good measure!
Benedetta is a real mixed bag in terms of tone and genre and it felt like Verhoeven didn’t know what he wanted it to be or just wanted it to be everything all at once. There are ridiculous scenes and WTF moments (I don’t want to spoil) that made me laugh and I wasn’t too sure if it was supposed to be funny. I couldn’t tell if it was taking itself seriously or not. The film has plenty of moments when it’s a totally normal drama but then it goes absolutely nuts again. The ending left me stunned because it devolves into complete chaos.
Efira really commits to this brave role and she has a strong, commanding presence on screen. Benedetta remains a mystery to us; we never really know if she’s telling the truth or not. Patakia plays the naive novice who has run away from an abusive situation and seems taken by Benedetta immediately. It’s almost like she’s hungry for her love and attention. Charlotte Rampling is also fantastic as Abbess Felicita – the head of the convent. She exudes a calm and quiet authority but this is tested by Benedetta’s ‘connection’ to Jesus.
Benedetta is absolutely bonkers. I don’t even know if I liked it or not because my overwhelming reaction was “what the heck did I just watch?” One thing is for sure, you won’t be bored! It’s tonally all over the place and tries to do too much but it’s entertaining.
In cinemas Friday 15th April