Parthenope: Beautiful Images, Distant Emotions

Parthenope turns a life journey into sumptuous images without finding an equally compelling emotional story. Paolo Sorrentino returns to a Naples shaped by memories, myths and melancholy encounters.

Celeste Dalla Porta plays Parthenope Di Sangro across a story spanning decades. The men around her notice her beauty, but she wants more from life: knowledge, experience and meaning. Anthropology studies bring her into contact with Silvio Orlando's eccentric professor, while a summer on Capri includes an encounter with writer John Cheever, played by Gary Oldman.

Daria D'Antonio's camerawork is gorgeous. Streets, sea, light and shadow form images that invite you to get lost in them. The music fits their visual poetry. The problem is how often that beauty substitutes for narrative and emotional depth.

Parthenope remains elusive. She radiates presence and watches the world, yet her feelings and motivations are frequently vague. Major changes are suggested rather than explored. Strong actors in supporting roles become decorative encounters more than meaningful relationships.

Dalla Porta supplies elegance and presence, particularly when the film briefly becomes tangible. Oldman's short appearance adds depth before the story drifts back into its stylized dream world.

Sorrentino wants to address beauty, aging, femininity and memory. Too much remains an assertion rather than an insight. For me, this is a visually intoxicating collection of moods that shows much more than it makes me feel.