Perfect Strangers

I don't remember when was the last time a saw a high quality comedy. Ninety percent of comedies that come from Hollywood are immature gibberish filled with trivialities which portray life as it never is. But now finally comes a comedy movie for grown ups with thematic elements suitable for mature audiences. Perfetti sconosciuti is very funny, sometimes sad, intelligent and charming in a way only European movies can be, especially Italian and Spanish.

Seven friends gather for a dinner. Table is and always has been a central element of human activities. Food opens people up for friendship and humor. Now, these seven people carried by such delight agree to play a game which may bring to surface things they never wanted to share. They have known each other for years but it turns out only superficially. Perfetti sconosciuti is pretty serious movie when stripped from jokes and charm. That has to be so since sharing, or more so unwillingly sharing, our deepest secrets and desires with people whom we know for years in unbelievably difficult; more difficult than sharing those things with strangers. That's why I've written that this movie is a comedy made for mature audiences - younger viewers just won't be able to read fine details and understand the difficulties, which come with years, this movie brings about.

Tempo of the movie is perfectly hit. Everything looks absolutely natural. There are no more important or less important scenes. All of them come together as to form a uniform experience. That way the viewer somehow becomes eighth person invited to the dinner, figuratively speaking. This is something similar to the way conversation keeps flowing in 12 Angry Men. Since Perfetti sconosciuti is a talk movie, acting plays a pivotal role since there are no many other elements which can compensate for it, in contrast to American made comedies which are almost entirely adventure oriented. In all sincerity I have to admit that this seven people did better job with acting than most of their over-hyped and planetary famous Hollywood colleagues. All of them covered a very wide range of emotions in a very convincing manner.

This is very refreshing and brave movie to make which I warmly recommend, especially to those of you who are tired of trivial humor, trivial characters and plots. You may even discover a thing or two about yourself.

What a fantastic piece of art. A movie containing an abundance of emotions, psychology and surprises.

It has been a while I have been both touched by tears and laughter at the same time.

An incredible scenario, fantastically written, composed and acted upon. Interpersonal relationships at its finest.

The constant twists in the plot, along with great acting makes the movie to be fascinating from beginning to end.

If you like Woody Allen movies, you should definitely watch this one. Simply amazing!

I've never liked truth or dare, so as soon as one of the characters suggested a truth/dare like game for a peaceful get together with friends, I knew at a personal level that the worst would come about. 'Single room' movies, ever so dependent on a strong script, can easily become overbearing, if wit does not overcome the wry mundaneness of life and the timing of events is not both harmonious and believable. When a theater play is the source material, you know at least that there's a pedigree to the writing before you embark on the journey, so this blind test was something different to, let's say, Carnage (an engrossing adaptation itself). But different good.

A group of life-long friends gather at a dinner party, as the prologue already hints at cracks in the relationships between the couples coming together. The device meant to drive them towards unraveling is a 'game' wherein everyone lays their mobile phones on the table and all messages and calls are answered/viewed in public - funny enough, someone still has a Nokia! Well, the tension is palpable from the get-go and as two of the friends make a 'trade' in the hopes of mitigating fallout from an expected text, this actually proves to be the least of their problems.

As mentioned above, the first questions to answer pertain to timing and believability. The execution of the escalation scenario is convincing, in that it builds well towards a final release. However, your sense of disbelief is tested at certain points, as too much seems to be happening at once. It's inevitable and the film deals with it in a very clever way, but the premise remains questionable - that everyone gets up to so much mischief in an exciting way.

The set-up is used to deliver some relevant arguments about the nature of relationships, the meaning of trust and the way that technology works as a filter. All lives are presumed to be defined by some sort of multiplicity, of things that happen which we don't share with those around us because they are hard to explain, hurtful or simply duplicitous. In a way, it has never been so easy to deceive, while actually being just an unwanted glance away from one's reveal. The movie argues that what we ultimately see is the veneer of authenticity, so intricately holding together a web of lies, even among the thickest of friends. What it does even better is point to the fact that while there are some rules of thumb to explain the behaviour of other people, really understanding which rules apply to whom is a question of context and of prejudices.

What remains difficult to obscure is the artificiality of some of the situations - related to the need for entertaining drama. Worrying too much about surprising the audience with shock after shock is damaging not only in itself, but in tearing apart the integrity of the characters. Moreover, some meek symbolism, like the mystical eclipse of the full moon acting as a trigger for 'the unveiling', is equally unnecessary, if harmless.

Yet, it's fairly easy to transcend these inadequacies thanks to the sound build up of the atmosphere, the well rounded characters, and the depth the movie achieves in its existential commentary. Not sure I would label this a comedy, but it sure is a dinner date gone haywire, with some beautiful Italian flair to go with the ever so doubtful bio wine.

The film depicts a normal dinner party. A group of middle-aged friends eat and drink together discussing how smartphones influence our everyday life. As they all agree they have nothing to hide they decide to play a game that will put their beliefs and friendships to test.

The film is strong on individual performances, a facetious script and honest character building.

Recommended!

Quite difficult to believe that Paolo Genovese's Perfect Strangers is not inspired by a theater play. Everything happens within the closed limits of one apartment where seven friends meet for a casual dinner which turns into something completely different when they decide to play a 'Truth or Do' kind of game using their ... mobile phones. One immediately thinks to movies like Roman Polanski's Carnage , but that one was based on the play (and screenplay) of Yasmina Reza. It seems however in this case that the movie took precedence, but I am confident that the stage adaptations will follow quickly. So will the American remake, I am afraid.

What happens if all the calls, messaging, social networking content we believe to be confidential comes in the clear? This is the game the friends decide to play and the results will - as expected- be disastrous for most of the friendships and couple relationships. Is the film about the dangers of social networking and other forms of Internet communication? or maybe about the dangers of hiding and lying and trusting or not trusting your friends? One should see this film to decide. And ask yourself also if you are ready to play the game with your friends.

The film starts at a slow pace, and it took a while to catch me. When it did it was fantastic. It also contains a final twist in the script that I will not reveal. It's well acted and smartly written. I recommend it. There are good chances that you'll enjoy it.