L'IMMENSITÁ (The Immensity)- A place to be oneself

Movie Review by Sergio Martinez

This Italian film, recently released in Montreal, is directed by Emanuele Crialese and stars Penelope Cruz, Luana Giulani and Vincenzo Amato in the lead roles.

Clara and her daughter Adri, share time
together in spite of some disagreements.

Set in the 1970s, Clara (Penelope Cruz) and Felice (Vincenzo Amato) form a typical affluent marriage, which subsists more on appearances than on the couple's affection. In fact, the latter is practically non-existent.

The woman, who is certainly not happy in her married life, seeks in her three children a sort of refuge from her own condition. Although this relationship does not always flow as she would like it to.

This is especially true in the relationship with her eldest daughter, Adriana (Luana Giulani), a pre-teen who is not comfortable in her body, prefers to be called Andrea —a male name that in Italian is equivalent to Andrew— and seeks some sign from outer space, as she claims to have been conceived by extraterrestrials. Basically, the girl is transgender, but at a time when there is no real understanding and even less acceptance of that condition, her appearance and attitudes are taken as "oddities", somewhat accepted because she is still perceived as a child. What the others do not know is that Adri (Andrea) has already ventured, albeit very initially, in the search for love.

The couple's children pose for a photo,
Adri makes no secret of her discomfort.

The other children, though younger, also hint at gestures of discomfort: Gino (Patrizio Francioni), the middle boy, usually afraid of disobeying his parents, will show it in a very unhygienic way.

The film portrays characters who struggle to be themselves, despite the constraints of family and social conventions. There is some symbolism in Adriana's (Andrea) search for a sign from outer space that, in truth, she may simply be looking for a sign of real affection from her immediate space.

In Adri's fantasies, her mother appears
very different from her real life.

Filmed especially in enclosed settings —the rooms of the house, Adriana's classroom, or the school chapel— this makes the film reinforce the idea of emotional confinement of the characters. The only escape is provided by the fantasies of Adriana's imagination, which puts her mother in scenes of exuberant musical displays, the opposite of her own life.

It is a film we recommend.

Released May 26 at Cinéma du Musée (French subtitles), Cinema Forum (English subtitles) and Cinéma du Parc (English subtitles).

Running time: 97 min.