NZIFF Film Review: "The Wonders" ("Le meraviglie") (2014).

From the director of Heavenly Body comes The Wonders (Le meraviglie). This drama film written and directed by Alice Rohrwacher. Nothing will be the same at the end of this summer for Gelsomina and her three younger sisters. She is the designated heir of the strange, secluded kingdom that her father constructed around them to protect his family from "the end of the world". An extraordinary summer, when the strict rules that hold the family together, are beginning to break: in part due to the arrival of Martin, a German boy on a youth rehabilitation program, and in part the local community's participation in a TV competition for big prizes "Village Wonders", presented by the mysterious Milly Catena.

Rohrwacher based the movie on her memories of her childhood working for her parents, who were beekeepers. Rohrwacher stated that some parts of the film were filmed illegally, particularly the parts with the bees which they were not supposed to film for insurance purposes and which she filmed anyway on a national holiday when no one was around to stop her. 

The film stars Alba Rohrwacher, André Hennicke, Monica Bellucci, Sabine Timoteo and Sam Louwyck. Rohrwacher gives a lovely, unforced performance as Gelsomina, a young woman who is convinced to achieve anything but mediocrity and mundanity.

Though at times heavy-handed in its imagery and slow-paced, Rohrwacher's sophomore feature is remarkably unadorned and touching, putting forth a realistic portrait of modern Italy at a time when the country faces economic hardship as well as cultural changes.  For those willing to overlook its few slips into heavy-handedness, the film tells a compelling story of a young woman thrust into a strange new world. Rohrwacher's debut fictional feature is an uncommonly insightful portrait of nascent womanhood, assisted in no small measure by Alba's disarmingly naturalistic performance. The film's acute sense of place, feel for adolescent confusion and miraculous resolution suggest that Rohrwacher is a talent to watch. Rohrwacher's sophomore feature exhibits the sort of mannerisms a certain stripe of cinephile tends to dread, on or off the festival circuit. Grittily real but somehow dreamlike at the same time, coming of age tale the film is a quietly impressive feature debut for documentary maker Alice Rohrwacher. Minor tonal inconsistencies are overcome by this intimate tale's naturalistic thesping and loose lensing style. Almost every moment feels real and unrehearsed because the characters' specific qualities work inward rather than outward. The film is a coming-of-age tale unbound from the expectations of a genre that it remains undeniably hooked to at its heart, so that it's also a revelatory portrait of a family, a region, and a way of life. Rohrwacher has a gentle, unassuming touch through most of the film, quietly observing the beekeepers' hard work and pre-modern lifestyle without condescension, and her leads are effectively natural. The film manages to examine its entire cast of characters, male and female, in a loving but clear and pitiless light. Overall, The Wonders is an example of insightful, though-provoking filmmaking but is let down by its bizarre change of tone.

Simon says The Wonders (Le meraviglie) receives:

Also, see my NZIFF review for Maps to the Stars.