Direction: Paul Verhoeven
Country: France / Netherlands
No one can deny that Benedetta - a psychological, religious-themed biographical drama directed and co-written by Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven - is a shocker. The story, loosely based on a non-fiction novel by Judith C. Brown, takes us to Tuscany, Italy, in the 17th century, as the young Benedetta Carlini happily joins the convent headed by a materialistic abbess (Charlotte Rampling). She arrives by the hand of her thankful father who offers her to God for her miraculous born. 18 years later, Benedetta (Virginie Efira), who considers herself the spouse of Jesus and gradually earns the reputation of a miracle-maker, is haunted by wild erotic dreams, carnal desires and chilling premonitions. Is she really blessed or possessed?
The film satirizes religion as a form of power, burning in carnal pleasures, punishment, blasphemy, fervent devotion and dubiousness. It doesn’t pretend to give many answers, but it's curious and inevitable for us to ask them. Everything here is the antithesis of piety, and the experienced Verhoeven explores that to the limit by poking, provoking and leaving us in permanent doubt until the very end.
Having worked with the director in Elle (2016), Efira exceeds expectations here and delivers a tour-de-force performance, splendidly supported by Rampling, Daphne Patakia and Lambert Wilson.
Pulsing with discomfort and mysticism, this tale poses moral and spiritual challenges, but can also be a bit ludicrous sometimes as with the cathartic street scene that precedes the finale. At the age 84, Verhoeven is not only in top form but equal to himself: controversial and gutsy.
