Benedetta

Paul Verhoeven’s French lesbian nun biopic was equally riveting as it will - was - undoubtedly be divisive. The fact that the film was based on real events makes it even more fascinating. Although the film ran rather long - 131 minutes - most of it was interesting except for a meandering second act where Verhoeven needlessly focused too much on the sapphic aspects instead of deepening Benedetta as a character. We understood her purely on a superficial level but what led her to make the choices that drove the final act was never fully explored. As a biopic, the central character remained as much an enigma in the beginning as in the end (Wikipedia offered more insight).

Virginie Efira definitely had screen presence but her Benedetta lacked that enigmatic charm to fully sell her as a mystic with a personality cult. Daphne Patakia as her lover, Bartolomea, had little to work on, despite a tragic back story, only acting as the narrative demanded it with no consistency or substantive reasons.

Charlotte Rampling was the highlight, a delight to watch as she stole the scenes with each pursed lips and clasped hands, and a slight nod or shake of the head. Verhoeven should put Isabelle Huppert and Rampling together and watch them both chew the sceneries - and hopefully each other - apart.

“Benedetta” was an interesting film for its historical context and entertaining for what it may or may not have been.