Twice a year one of the biggest cinema chains in the Netherlands organizes the PAC-festival (Pathé Alternative Cinema). A day during which five (usually) arthouse movies are shown. It’s something I always look forward to. Not only because they are movies that still have to be released, but also because in general the quality is high and the atmosphere in the cinema is great (you meet people from previous vistis and you share this room from 10 in the morning to almost midnight). This year the festival started with Loro, directed by Paolo Sorrentino (The Great Beauty, Youth). Was it a good start?
Loro is set in Italy and is all about politician Silvio Berlusconi (Toni Servillo). It is about the people who want to get close to him in order to have his power rub off on them and the man himself.
This film originally consisted of two parts, but as far as I understood these have been edited and made into one movie so it could compete for the Oscars. In that process a lot of footage had to be cut and that’s something that you really notice. The first half of the movie is like an orgy of images. They look beautiful, but there are so many without any real structure that it is really hard to get a grip on it. Sergio (Riccardo Scarmacio) is a man who is trying to build his stable of prostitutes. His goal is to stand out and be noticed by Berlusconi. It is during the second half of the film that he himself shows up and it is from this moment the movie seems to find its stride and focus. Everything feels a lot more structured, but the story from the first half seems to be complete forgotten. It is possible because two movies have been merged together, but it is clear material is missing and Sergio is but a footnote in Berlusconi’s life. He had big dreams which turned out not to be realistic.
Servillo is great in his role as Berlusconi. A man who sees himself as a salesman in dreams and is willing to do anything in order to profit from it. He acts like a godfather, wielding his power and deciding on the fate of others while living like an emperor in his villa, surrounded by beautiful women when his own wife isn’t around. If she is around he tries everything in order to make her happy. It’s her voice which seems to mirror the feelings of many people about him. Still, Loro is an unbalanced film which disappoints with its lack of clear storyline and overdose of imagery.`
[score6]