L’immensità
Synopsis
Sometimes life just seems too big to cope with, and this film follows a family where that is all too true. Centred on the mother, Clara (Penelope Cruz) who is cracking up trying to keep here family together; trying to ignore her husband's extra marital shenanigans and trying to understand her eldest daughter, Adriana, who - if she only knew it back in 1970 Rome where this is set - is suffering from gender dysphoria and insists on being called Andrea.
Clara's way of coping is to identify with her children, and behaving like them - running through the streets shouting, even hiding under the table at a dinner party. There is still time for some beautiful tender moments with them, and, of course, being played by Penelope Cruz does help — she is fast building a reputation for these parts.
The character of Andrea is loosely based on director Emanuele Crialese's younger life, so he does empathise with his/her experience, giving the film a realistic feel. This is aided by some great acting from Luana Guiliani who plays Andrea "Sloe-eyed newcomer Giuliani, who identifies as a cisgender female in real life, is remarkable in a role that requires equal measures of innocence, sensitivity, and anger" - Steve Davis, Austin Chronicle.
Clara's way of coping is to identify with her children, and behaving like them - running through the streets shouting, even hiding under the table at a dinner party. There is still time for some beautiful tender moments with them, and, of course, being played by Penelope Cruz does help — she is fast building a reputation for these parts.
The character of Andrea is loosely based on director Emanuele Crialese's younger life, so he does empathise with his/her experience, giving the film a realistic feel. This is aided by some great acting from Luana Guiliani who plays Andrea "Sloe-eyed newcomer Giuliani, who identifies as a cisgender female in real life, is remarkable in a role that requires equal measures of innocence, sensitivity, and anger" - Steve Davis, Austin Chronicle.
Critics
“'L'immensità' lives up to its title: It's a small but all-encompassing portrait of how life feels in a certain time and place - when the broken pieces of one's true self are invisibly coming together, even when getting them to fit feels too overwhelming to contemplate”
“The force of Cruz’s charisma — she’s like a cross between Sophia Loren and a solar flare — is more than enough to justify spending time with the family.”
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