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Review by Simon Bell |
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AN ordinary and untroubled family of psychoanalyst Dad, art gallery supervising
Mum and basketball fanatic daughter are forced to confront and reassess all
that has gone before when their beloved son and brother dies unexpectedly
in a freak scuba-diving accident... That's pretty much all there is to The
Son's Room.
But don't be deceived: This 2001 Palme d'Or-winning gold nugget isn't as simple
as it may first appear; there's more substance to this 87 minutes of auteurship
than is contained in a sackload of film's appearing elsewhere on Indielondon's
pages.
Giovanni, with his profitable practice, lives in relative harmony in the Adriatic
beauty of Ancona. (Several strikingly photographed images, care of Giuseppe
Lanci, invite innocent wonder as Moretti jogs along a spring sunshine-drenched
harbour over the opening credits). There he resides with gorgeous wife Paola
(Laura Morente) and teenage kids Andrea (Giuseppe Sanfelice) and Irene (Jasmine
Trinca).
Thirty minutes of crafted exposition later, tragedy strikes: Having to cancel
a jog with his son to attend a patient's possible suicide bid, Giovanni allows
Andrea to meet friends for the doomed boat trip. What follows is an acute
and emotionally wrought portrait of a man and his brood consumed with guilt
and despair.
An actor, writer, producer, director and exhibitor (this latest is also made
by his own production company, Sacher Film), Nanni Moretti is best known in
the UK for Dear
Diary (1993) and Aprile
(1998). But while these are serio-comic documentaries, The Son's Room is not
played for so many laughs. (There is, however, a moment when Giovanni stands
in rapt stupefaction of a group of dancing Hari Krishnas that has an echo
of his earlier work.)
Scenes
in the consulting room, as he tries to instill a modicum of rationality into
his patients' very irrational lives, provide fleeting moments of comic relief,
and it's here where those who like to label Moretti the "Italian Woody
Allen" will derive most enjoyment.
Meanwhile, and easily the most devastating, is an exchange between husband
and wife that centres on a teapot: The attention to detail is awe-inspiring.
Nicola Piovanni - an Oscar-winner for his saccharine musical composition on
Roberto Benigni's Life
is Beautiful (1997) - adds a touch too much sugar once again. But with
additions in the form of Brian Eno and Michael Nyman, we'll forgive him. For,
otherwise, The Son's Room is a picture of perfection.
Serious film fans shouldn't wait one glug of grappa longer: This is
an unarguable work of genius befitting of both its praise and prizes.
