The Hand of God

A great filmmaker gives us a very personal yet uneven work.

Paolo Sorrentino was born in Naples in 1970 and this latest film of his, somewhat different in character from its predecessors, is set there. Indeed, it would appear that there is a strong autobiographical element in The Hand of God which has at its centre a teenage boy who can readily be seen as standing in for the young Paolo even if he is named Fabietto Schisa. The fact that the film takes place in the mid-1980s fits this supposition, but the strongest connection of all comes when Fabietto unexpectedly loses his parents just as Sorrentino himself did when he was sixteen years old. It's also the case that, although the narrative unfolds directly, the music used for the film is admirably chosen to suggest that what we are seeing is a memory of past days.

The opening shots of The Hand of God are magnificent as the camera (photography in colour and ’Scope by Daria D’Antonio) approaches Naples from the sea and introduces us to the city. Indeed, the way in which the whole film is directed marks out Sorrentino as a master (that is no longer a revelation but a confirmation). But, despite that pleasure, this is an uneven work. Nevertheless, whatever fictional elements are involved, this is a piece marked by real warmth, not least in showing the bond between Fabietto played by Filippo Scotti and his older brother Marchino (Marlon Joubert). Important as the parents are in these memories of growing up in a family, they are hardly fleshed out. The father, Saverios (the great Toni Servillo readily giving himself to the work's ensemble approach) is shown without much detail or comment as a man with Communist beliefs and the mother, Maria (Teresa Saponangelo), is portrayed as a prankster. Even if more detailed characterisations would have been possible they are believable figures, but some of the subsidiary characters are nearer to caricature. In part this can be put down to the influence of Fellini whose Amarcord (1973) is sometimes recalled but this aspect never dominates.

When it comes to defects that matter more seriously, they are three in number. The first is linked to the film’s attitude to women. A central feature here is Fabietto’s sexual desires and the unexpected way in which he loses his virginity. That scene is in fact rather well handled (Betti Pedrazzi gives the film’s best performance as the rather elderly woman involved in this). Elsewhere, however, the male gaze is indulged as in certain scenes featuring Fabietto’s aunt (Luisa Ranieri). It could be said that these scenes reflect the viewpoint of adolescent males but one has to remember that in 2018’s Loro a comparable emphasis on Sorrentino's part was evident. If it was questionable then, it seems even more so in the Me Too! era. Furthermore, later on when Fabietto finds a new friend their bond develops despite the man’s deplorable behaviour to a couple which we have just witnessed but which goes unremarked on.

The second flaw stems from the fact that The Hand of God gives the impression that it has covered most of its material at a time when it still has another half hour or so to run. By then the 1980s setting has been fully evoked including the excitement due to Maradona playing for Napoli and in addition the adolescent portrait leading to Fabietto's coming to terms with the accidental deaths of his parents seems more or less complete. The third failure is linked to that since it resides in the absence of any build-up to the notion that young Fabietto will find his way in life, his vocation, by setting out to be a filmmaker. The last quarter is centred on that but it comes out of nowhere (seemingly Fabietto has seen only three or four films and references to Fellini holding film auditions is a passing matter that gives no indication that the boy will become passionate about cinema). Nor does it help that the boy’s eventual contact with a film director (Ciro Capano) who offers to become his mentor seems totally unlikely as shown here.

Considered as a whole these weaknesses are substantial, but the parts of the film unaffected by them are really good and it is not that often that a film delights through one's awareness that it could only be the work of a born filmmaker. That said, it's a quality that demands that the film should if possible be seen on the cinema screen but, since this is a Netflix release, The Hand of God will doubtless have only a modest cinema release and most viewers will perforce see it at home.

Original title: È stata la mano di Dio.

MANSEL STIMPSON

Cast: Filippo Scotti, Toni Servillo, Teresa Saponangelo, Marlon Joubert, Luisa Ranieri, Betti Pedrazzi, Ciro Capano, Birte Berg, Alessandro Bressanello, Massimiliano Gallo, Sofya Gershevich, Renato Cappentieri.

Dir Paolo Sorrentino, Pro Lorenzo Mieli and Paolo Sorrentino, Screenplay Paolo Sorrentino, Ph Dario D’Antonio, Pro Des Carmine Guarino, Ed Cristiano Travaglioli, Costumes Mariano Tufano.

The Apartment/Netflix-Netflix.
130 mins. Italy. 2021. Rel: 3 December 2021. Cert. 15.