La partita lenta

"La Partita Lenta" ("The Slow Match") reveals the great beauty of seeing little details about what makes a rugby match become something vividly special. Acclaimed director Paolo Sorrentino creates a sport-themed short film that is an artistic poetry in motion, beautiful, told and presented in a simple fashion. His exercise in style is a tremendous work: black-and-white cinematography; mute all the main characters and only allowing background sounds that aren't actually important, so even if you don't speak Italian you can watch with no problems, and at last but not least the precise and magic use of slow motion during the awaited match that makes all more interesting, capturing the precise movements of the players, trying to make a score. Those who enjoy the sport will love every minute of it, and those who don't know much about it or don't care much will definitely find some brilliance and some effective power at each frame.

Before the match, we are introduced to some characters: father, mother and son, with the men in the family being part of the same team. The communication between them is kept to a minimum, being the highest peak the contact between them in the locker room along with the other members of the team, stretching and similar exercises, focusing on the challenges they're about to face. And then comes the spectacle that is something that can't be defined with words, it's something that has to be seen, has to be felt and experienced. Belissimo! 9/10