Benedetta
Dir: Paul Verhoeven
France/ Netherlands, 2021, French, 127mins, DCP
Cast: Virginie Efira, Charlotte Rampling, Daphne Patakia, Lambert Wilson
Teaming up again with writer David Birke who penned Paul Verhoeven’s previous masterpiece Elle (Summer IFF 2016), the fearless Dutch provocateur pushes the boundaries even further with this taboo-breaking, overthe- top film that will surely offend as well as inspire. Set in a 17-century Tuscany convent, a nun with religious visions and bleeding stigmata falls for an impetuous young nun and develops a taste for excess. A wildly intelligent and fun ride that comments on populism and challenges the church’s hypocrisy and lust for power, Benedetta, like Catherine in Basic Instinct (1992), climbs her way to power in a male-dominated world and achieves emancipation by finding her own voice, through her faith and sexuality.
Cannes Film Festival: In Competition
- Tai Kwun
- Chinese Subtitles
- Category III
Remarks
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