​FILMS

the dinner

2015 review number 129:

The Dinner: (Drama): 62 out of 100: A subtitled Italian film also known as I nostri ragazzi will not endear itself to viewers who like a continuous narrative from the beginning. It starts off with a road rage incident but the characters involved are then banished to make way for another story which is loosely linked. There are several interesting scenes which examine morals but the abrupt ending makes it difficult to appreciate what has happened before it. 

 

Lawyer, Massimo (Alessandro Gassman) and Sofia (Barbora Bobulova) are married with a teenage daughter, Benedetta (Rosabell Laurenti Sellers). Massimo's brother, Paolo (Luigi Lo Cascio), is married to Clara (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and they have a teenage son, Michele (Jacopo Olmo Antinori). We are introduced to both families when we discover that Massimo is defending the man who injured a boy in a road rage incident. This boy is being treated in hospital by Paolo who is a doctor. The crux of the narrative involves the two cousins, Benedetta and Michele, who may have been involved in a bashing of an elderly lady. The respective families discuss the implications and determine what track they must pursue. 

 

There's no doubt that the main cast members act with a steely determination. One cannot fault any of their performances. The main problem lies in the story. There's quite a fair bit of dialogue to take in and you feel cheated that what happens in the first quarter doesn't really have anything to do with the rest of the film. All those subtitles to read and some of them are meaningless! 

 

The direction by Ivano De Matteo who also co-wrote the screenplay, is adequate in that the actors are allowed to do their thing. There's no camera tricks or long, boring takes on inanimate objects to take away from the acting performances. It does mean though that there's quite a fair bit of melodrama which needed a stronger narrative thread to develop the characters. The theme of not admitting guilt might also frustrate viewers as the characters then come across as being unlikeable and aloof.

 

The music score and cinematography both add atmosphere to the movie. The mood created allows the viewer to engage themselves in the story once the central plot line is created, but it's a shame that it can't always be maintained when the narrative themes are disjointed. 

 

I'm not sure why it's called The Dinner as there's only one scene where the four adults sit together to have dinner and discuss what they should they do with their children. That's just an example of how the whole theme of the movie lacks focus. If I wasn't a fan of subtitled movies, I would be bored with reading all the subtitles that only become interesting when the two cousins are implicated in a violent incident. Don't see this if you've never seen a subtitled movie before because you might be turned off by subtitles for life!

 

Starring Alessandro Gassman, Giovanna Mezzogiorno and Luigi Lo Cascio 

(92 minutes)

Parental advice: Coarse language, violence, adult themes and nudity

Additional scene during or after credits: No

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVtnxqN3d2E (Movie trailer)

 

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