Come Undone

Cosa voglio di più, English title 'Come Undone', is essentially the story of an affair. It provides little context or psychological examination of its characters, makes no moral judgement and offers little in the way of justification for their actions. The Italian title (translated literally as 'What more do I want') gives more emphasis to the idea of the film literally being about just wanting something more.

There doesn't seem to be any particularly deep want in Anna. Her sister might have just had a baby, but she doesn't really seem to be ready to have one with husband/boyfriend, Alessio. The relationship between them is easy-going and stable, even if there is no real passion there. He's a handyman, watches the pennies carefully; she works in administration for an insurance company. If their love life is unexciting, there's no conflict there either, certainly nothing that suggests that she's ready for an affair.

There's no doubt however that she is interested in Domenico/Mimmo, a cater who turns up for one of their work functions. Anna suggests coffee, they finally manage a meeting, and eventually end up at a motel for sex. It soon becomes a regular affair, but finding the time to be together is increasingly difficult. Mimmo has a wife and two children and has to steal an hour or two while he is supposed to be at the pool swimming. Anna, plays the old working late at the office line. There's only so long before suspicions are aroused in their partners, but Anna is impatient.

All Cosa voglio di più seems to be saying is that we all need a little bit of excitement outside the mundane practicalities of life. For all the passions that are raised, it's curiously detached, lacking the more gentle charm of a similar theme in Soldini's Bread and Tulips. For most films it would be the passionate affair and the exploration of deep emotional needs that would be the focus of the story, but Soldini intentionally seems to give more attention to the little banalities that have to be taken into consideration, taking time over Anna looking through brands of facewipes while she takes a call from Mimmo, or Mimmo mentally balancing the cost of paying for a motel room against the urgent needs of his children. It's refreshingly more honest about the realities of affairs, but that perhaps doesn't make for the most exciting drama.

Once the Italians gave up on realism in film they were stuck with movies by such dullards as Antonioni, the bored doings of the rich and fashionable Italians. This movie is not about rich and fashionable Italians but it is still boring. Sexual attraction, can you believe it?, causes problems for all involved and the principal characters have to decide how far they will go in self gratification which also involves harming many other people. Here the ending could go any number of ways and the way it finally goes is certainly believable but also banal. I cannot imagine two more boring hours with some very unappealing Milanesi, not one is really attractive, male or female. Perhaps this is the new realism; give me the old!

When it comes to hot and heavy sex scenes this film takes the cake. Oh, brother! Sure got me going. The rest of the film was okay but the sex scenes are what makes this film unforgettable and memorable. The director here sure knew what he was doing. He managed to make you want both the man and the woman at the same time! Yikes! What goes on here? The story is not at all original but the telling of it keeps you on the edge of your seat constantly. It was even difficult to take a break, the intensity of the situation was so demanding. Everything about the film was first rate. The acting, the script, the settings, the photography, the music, it just all comes together in a very classy way.

Silvio Soldini is a very good director. At his best, he can give us touching, inspiring comedies like "Pane e Tulipani" or in-depth social studies like "Un'anima divisa in due".

Unfortunately this film seems to be stuck in the middle, and ultimately have no point. Well acted (Giuseppe Battiston is always a guarantee), interestingly filmed, too little edited. Yes, the editor could have left some more out of it.

The analysis of the Italian contemporary society (financial struggle, emptiness, fear of engagement) is quite precise, but gets lost in a never-ending (and repeating) lovers' story, everybody gets tired about. The audience tend to look forward the other characters, the whole support cast (the friends, the betrayed companions, the families), because these two really go back an forth, back and forth, back and forth...

Alba Rohrwacher doesn't seem to have enough to work on, in terms of creating a complete character. She's good, but seeing her driving around for a while doesn't take the story anywhere. Pierfrancesco Favino has a more interesting character, and Teresa Saponangelo has a standardized role (as a betrayed wife and mother of screaming children) that we've seen way to often (what a missed opportunity).

At the end of the 'World Première', here in Berlin, Silvio Soldini didn't really know what to say, except to thank for the polite applauses. That's the point: he has the craft, the skills, the production means and the crew to create something new and revealing. We still love you, but please wait for the inspiration, next time. A film can come out wrong like "Agata e la tempesta" and still be an enjoyable experience, but if there is nothing to say, better to pass on to the next project.

Also, please have the English subtitles redone. They were pretty bad. Don't cut corners and have them done better next time. Thanks!

... Cone Undone (Cosa voglio di più) really is one of the better films in the wife/partner-infidelity-genre... all is good.. script-casting-acting-production.values, all of it... unsatisfied-unhappy in her bland relationship, she quickly gets involved with a married man that has two small children... he just-wants a mistress (and his family), she's looking for a different-exciting-lustful-relationship

... story moves along more or less logically, sex scenes seeming real and intensely-passionate, chemistry between actors exceptionally-good.. blowing up a relationship you're not completely happy in doesn't appear to come at a very high price for her.. it's what she wants-desires

... if the movie were to continue on, how would you want it to go.. do they remain clandestinely-together.. does she find another lover that she can have a life with (more than just couple hours a week)... or does she stay with her live-in-partner without seeking outside-affairs... what's good about the work is that each of these scenarios seem realistically-plausible... real ending's in viewer's mind.