Black Angel – Senso '45 (2002)

Black Angel – Senso ’45: Directed by Tinto Brass. With Anna Galiena, Gabriel Garko, Franco Branciaroli, Antonio Salines. Trapped in an unhappy marriage, the wife of a high ranking Fascist official starts a dangerous, self-destructive relationship with a duplicitous S.S. Officer.

“Franco and Brass, even Argento matter to me. They have intuition that inspires. Yes, they make vulgar and sometimes nonsensical films. But that is just a matter of degree compared to Hollywood fare, right?u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhat I like about Brass isnu0026#39;t about the women or situations, but how he chooses to frame and light the photographs. This is related to womenu0026#39;s fashion magazines, where we know the models are insipid beings, and the clothes bordering on the ridiculous. They simply provide a narrative vocabulary for the artist to explore and exploit.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBrass does well sometimes, but he falls into a crevice when he relies on Nazi images in the context of sex. Here he reaches too far in trying to make something like u0026quot;The Garden of the Finzi-Continisu0026quot; with the tone of u0026quot;Europa.u0026quot; The film here clearly reaches to an analogy of Italy as a fading sexual beauty, confused in her passions and easily seduced by fascism. This could pay off, but the filmmaker himself is seduced into making a different film — one he instinctively knows. u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere is a war between the film he can make and the film he wants to, but alas this war is not interesting. Nor is the woman or the Italy she represents.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTedu0026#39;s Evaluation — 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.”