By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Ferzan Ozpetek
Starring: Giovanna Mezzogiorno | Massimo Girotti | Raoul Bova
Original language title: La Finestra di Fronte
Country: italy, portugal, turkey, united_kingdom
Year: 2004
Running time: 106
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0352343/combined
Bruce says: “Ferzan Ozpetek keeps growing with each film; first STEAM, then HIS SECRET LIFE and now FACING WINDOWS. I’ve felt each of his films has had problems which get in the way of achieving anything resembling perfection. Perfection, however, does seem to be within Ozpetek’s reach and I expect one day he will turn out a true gem.
“The year is 1943. A baker’s assistant is smoldering with pent up emotions. Suddenly he lunges at the baker and during the subsequent fight picks up a knife and kills the baker. He rushes out into the street and begins running. He reaches a fork in the road and clearly is frantic over which way to turn. Later we learn the nature of that decision, the high price the young man paid as a result and the many benefits that resulted. Fast-forward sixty years. Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and Filippo (Filippo Nigro) have been married for nine years and together longer than that, so long that the blush is off the rose. Children and financial worries have gotten in the way, as do the jobs each could easily do without. Giovanna is an accountant in a chicken processing plant and Filippo fills big rigs with gas on the graveyard shift. As they bicker in the street on the way home, Filippo falls out of step. Suddenly Giovanna sees him talking to an old man (Massimo Girotti) who seems to have lost his memory except for his name, Simone. Next thing Simone is in their car and they end up taking him home because they don’t know what else to do. Filippo is very protective of Simone as Giovanna wants to turn him away. Although Filippo supposedly goes to the police to report finding Simone, the police do not call back with any information on missing persons.
“Emine is a co-worker of Giovanna’s and she lives in the same building. They watch each other’s children and sometimes have communal meals. Emine provides lots of comic relief as does Martina the older child of Filippo and Giovanna. While doing the dishes, Emine looks out the window and notices that the good looking man (Raoul Bova) in an apartment across the way is only half dressed. She starts teasing Giovanna about him; alone, after everyone has gone to bed Giovanna has a look for herself. In her spare time Giovanna bakes pastries for the local pub to make ends meet. When she leaves Simone in the car while making a pastry delivery, her neighbor across the way runs into the pub and tells her Simone has wandered off. So the neighbors meet face to face. His name is Lorenzo. Together they find Simone. Soon Lorenzo becomes a key player in helping Giovanna solve the Simone m mystery. Before long Lorenzo becomes an escape fantasy for Giovanna. As it turns out Lorenzo has passionately adored her from afar. Emine encourages Giovanna to consummate the flirtation.
“Simone disappears for good shortly thereafter. Giovanna eventually discovers his true identity after she finds clues in a letter. The two become friends and through him Giovanna realizes she has reached a crossroads of sorts, emotionally speaking. She discovers truths about herself, her failed marriage and her potential new lover. The denouement of the film, when Giovanna glimpses her own life from the view of an outsider, is beautifully executed.
“Describing the sequence of events does not do justice to this film. Interspersed with the narrative line are flashbacks which involve the characters from both 1993 and 2003 brilliantly melded into single scenes capturing the moment at hand and the memories of a life lost long ago. Sadly, Massimo Girotti (OSSESSIONE; TEOREMA; MR. KLEIN; PASSIONE D’AMORE) died a few days after the film was edited. His performance and that of Giovanna Mezzogiorno are lovely beyond words.
“Some of the dialogue suffers from too much armchair philosophy. The ending is a reverie which avoids real events, leaving the viewer feeling a bit cheated that such a film should end with a whimper rather than the big bang which it deserves. That aside, the story and acting are still far superior to most American films. 4 cats”
Barbara says: “This film has some beautiful scenes with the two main characters (Giovanna Messogiorno and Massimo Girotti) particularly one in which they dance. Both of their characters’ eyes show so much hidden emotion. Maybe I am partial to all things Italian but I really liked the music and the scenes of the streets in Rome which is one of my favorite cities.
“Serra Yelmoz who plays Giovanna’s friend Emine provided great comic relief. 4 cats”
| Facing Windows (Italy/UK/Turkey/Portugal; 106 min.) directed by: starring: |
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