Penélope Cruz stars as Clara, living in Rome in the 1970s. She is unhappily married to Felice (Vincenzo Amato) and they have three kids. The eldest, Adriana (Luana Giuliani) has just turned twelve, and is beginning to question their gender identity.
This is a very unsatisfying movie. The trans part of the story is not developed properly and the rest of it feels tired and predictable. Despite Cruz’s best efforts, Clara, who is meant to be a suppressed free spirit in contrast to her bullying husband, just comes across as irresponsible and annoying.
Director Emanuele Crialese brings a lot of visual flourishes that serve no purpose and his screenplay, written with Francesci Manieri and Vittorio Moroni, is very disjointed and it feels unfinished. For example, Clara and Felice’s son starts defecating on the floor for no real reason and Adriana starts a romance with a local girl that just fizzles out.
Only the performances of Cruz and Amato keep things afloat.
Rating: 4.5 out of 10