Benedetta (2021)

 

Director Paul Verhoeven. Cast: Virginie Efira, Charlotte Rampling, Daphne Patakia, Lambert Wilson. 131 min. Historical/Drama.

• This is the problem I've always had with Paul Verhoeven movies: he thinks he's onto something deep, he actually may be onto something deep ... but then he buries his message under so much eye-popping dazzle, he ends up delivering something superficial. RoboCop and Total Recall nicely predict how corporate America (and not the government) will soon rule America, but then the extreme violence and in-your-face special effects totally distract you. Basic Instinct's perfect ending teaches how you can flip an entire carefully-written movie plot by just one scene and make the opposite plot-line plausible, but then at the end you only remember Sharon Stone's police interrogation scene. Verhoeven is the epitome of talent wasted in a hurricane of Hollywood attractions.
• Benedetta follows the structure of Basic Instinct: a nun in 17th century Italy has religious visions, and that ascends her to higher ranks. So, is she truly a saint, or just a charlatan, acting her way up? The movie presents both versions as possibilities, and leaves the decision up to you. Deep ... right? But then similar to Basic Instinct, the movie is riddled with erotic moments with a hot newcomer actress in charge - an approach which significantly jeopardizes the secondary characters' motivations and development within the story. At the end, this all begs the question: Okay, Paul, what was the real reason you made this movie?
• Nevertheless, it's not a bad movie. Just that I'm waiting to see the day when Paul Verhoeven, with his superb movie ideas, will mature into creating a masterpiece.

MoGo's rating: 6/10

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