‘Nanni Moretti THE SONS ROOM is a devastatingly powerful film’ that is my take home. It is also the by line which will sit just under this review in Google. It frankly is. Moretti had worked on a number of films prior to this (which he wrote, directed and starred in). Moretti was well known and he interest in exploring age, family and political identity were at the time (and still are) very pertinent to Italian society. As like many others, post millennium, they appear in flux.

Giovanni (Nanni Moretti) is a therapist, whose 17-year-old son Andrea is accused of stealing. Andrea is suspended and protests his innocence, but later confesses to his mother Paola he and his friend stole it as a prank. Giovanni decides to get closer to his son and make plans to go jogging together. He is unable to go due to an emergency with a patient and so Andrea goes scuba diving with a friend, were he has an accident that kills him. The family now must come to terms with life without the beloved son and heir.

THE SONS ROOM is not an easy watch. It is unrelenting in its exploration of loss and of Familia connection. With a stand out performance from Moretti, who works within a shell of a man, slowly collapsing and then being rebuilt. This is only a part of the grand scale of the work. Moretti directs with balance and at a distance. THE SONS ROOM Cannes Palm D’or was awarded all the more because the film never cheapens or excuses the grief. It cant. We need to journey along the pain and find the resolution. Making the film a work that is never easy but very rewarding.

DISC

The 1080p, for I cant see it the upscale if there is one, is sufficient. The grain and the natural light allows the viewer to not be distracted by gloss and glow.

EXTRAS

Extras:

Interview with Nanni Moretti and Laura Morante – Cannes Film Festival 2001