Synopsis
Vittorio is looking for a woman who matches his ideal. Through a classified ad he meets Sonia, a sweet, pleasant, intelligent girl. However, she weighs 125 pounds -- which according to Vittorio is way too much. A goldsmith by trade, Vittorio is obsessed with the desire to shape Sonia's body and mind as does a fire with gold. Almost imperceptibly Sonia becomes a passive participant and the relationship grows into a reciprocal masochistic game. When the two lovers isolate themselves in a country house in the Veneto hills, they dangerously lose touch with reality and the rest of the world.
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Cast
- Vitaliano TrevisanVittorio
- Michela CesconSonia
- Roberto ComacchioSonia's Brother
- Alberto ReyDoctor
- Paolo CapoduroPaolo
- Elvezia AllariAnna / Sonia's workmate
- Antonella MazzuccatoAntonella / Sonia's workmate
- Gianluca MorettoMopi / Sonia's workmate
- Marco ManzardoMarco / Sonia's workmate
- Antonio VieroMario / Jewellery master
Recommendations
- 75
New York Post
Wonderfully quirky love story. - 70
Village Voice
Probing the trust-based power games of a sadomasochistic dynamic, the movie is a reasonably thoughtful study of obsessive love. - 70
TV Guide Magazine
The atmosphere is once again black, creepy and unsettlingly elegant, lending this twisted tale of psychological dominance and submission a patina of anxiety and dread. - 63
New York Daily News
The movie exaggerates a common dynamic between men and women. - 60
Variety
While engaging, pic eventually betrays itself as having a trivial attitude to its chosen subject, with a climactic scene that is genuinely, but inappropriately, amusing. - 50
L.A. Weekly
The film, which is directed by Matteo Garrone (The Embalmer), could do with a bit more plot: It doesn't resolve so much as collapse in utter desolation. - 50
Los Angeles Times
An elegantly told tale of obsession that, in failing to take on any larger meaning, rapidly becomes depressing to watch. - 40
The New York Times
All setup and no payoff.
