Turin, 1938. Ginia leads a wise life between her work as a seamstress, the apartment she shares with her brother, who like her arrived from the countryside to earn a living in the city, and their small group of friends. One day, she meets Amelia, a young woman living in a world completely different from her own. Upon contact with him, his life begins to change…
This is a film where we can say that the cinematographer worked well. The light is beautiful and falls well on the actresses and actors, everything is clean and nicely decorated, the production designer also did his job well. The costume team is not to be outdone, each extra wears their little 1930s hat with class and the women are very elegant in their vintage dresses. Come to think of it, Turin seems so impeccable that it almost feels like an Italian episode of “Emily in Paris“, if the series took place in 1938.
If the aim of “The Bella Estate“is to make us want to travel to Italy, the challenge is met with flying colors. If, on the other hand, it is to transport us into this pseudo-modern story of a love affair full of unsaid words and embarrassed smiles, it is less successful. Unfortunately, behind these perfectly dusted images the depth desired by the story does not shine through. The apartment of Ginia and her brother, poor country people who came to the city to find work, is far too pretty to make us believe in their difficulties. , just as the dialogues are too hollow to allow us to empathize with them.
The long fixed shots follow one another, relying on Ginia's silences and shy glances to give us emotion. Difficult when the actress constantly uses three expressions: embarrassment, joy and embarrassed joy. We are a little disappointed for this story which nevertheless seeks to say something interesting, about the sticky desire of men, consent and the awakening of a woman to her own sexuality. We regret that we have to go through so many clichés, as if the chosen era served above all to create a nice setting for the story rather than to be really exploited.
Amande DionneSend a message to the editor
