Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 1 hour, 34 minutes
Director: Edoardo Ponti
Quick Impressions:
Last Thursday, I was so frustrated at not being able to watch this movie yet because it was premiering the next day. I thought, “Fine, fine, I’ll go ahead and watch Harry Melling dump spiders on his face for now, but I can’t wait until next week when we can see Sophia Loren in The Life Ahead.” Then my mother died on Friday morning, and suddenly the movie seems like less of a big deal.
It is a lovely film, though. It’s just a hard realization for me, the idea that Sophia Loren is 86, and my mother never will be. My grandma was 86 when she died. My mother had just turned 68. I don’t like this at all. I protest, “But her mother was 86. Her father was 78.” And then I remind myself, “Her brother was 48.” Life ends so quickly. One Thursday afternoon, you’re sitting on the couch playing Animal Crossing, and the next you’re in an urn on the mantle.
If my mother were alive, I would have shown her this movie. I would tell her, “Look, this is directed by Sophia Loren and Carlo Ponti’s younger son, Edoardo Ponti. See how he made such a beautiful showcase for his mother?” She would have liked the idea of Sophia Loren’s son directing his mother to great acclaim. But she wouldn’t have liked the movie. I always excitedly showed her as many potential Oscar nominees as I could. She almost never liked them. Oscar movies were just not her cup of tea. This is a beautiful film, though. I do think Sophia Loren will probably be nominated for Best Actress.
Incidentally, this is an Italian film, but if you watch on Netflix, chances are it will default to a dubbed English language version. It did that for us, and I wondered why everyone was speaking English in Italy. Then after we had been watching for about five minutes, I noticed that someone’s lip movements didn’t quite match his dialogue. It is possible to watch in the original Italian with English subtitles, but you have to manually adjust the settings. I recommend watching this way, to see the performances in their original language. (I do not know if Sophia Loren dubs herself in English. If I were her, I would, but no one consulted me.) I know Roberto Benigni recommended that non-Italian viewers watch a dubbed version of Life is Beautiful, so they could pay attention to his facial expressions and body language. But nobody should have trouble keeping their eyes on Sophia Loren. If you don’t watch her in Italian, you’re not seeing the real performance. Personally, I’d rather watch in Italian with no subtitles than watch a dubbed version, if those were my only choices.
The Good:
There’s a warmth and a beauty to this film. It’s the kind of story we don’t see often enough there days, about people coming together to show kindness to one another where they can.
Most of the characters in this story are marginalized people–a retired streetwalker, a young transgender mother (also a sex worker), a devout Muslim widower living in Italy, an orphan, an immigrant, an abandoned child, a Holocaust survivor, drug dealers. (Note, there’s overlap. Some characters fit into more than one category.)
Some major themes and plot elements resonated with me strongly on a personal level. Madame Rosa has a horror of hospitals (for what seems like a very good reason), and my mother also rarely went to the doctor because “they always find something.” She had chronic high blood pressure for at least the past ten years, but she took blood pressure medicine only briefly and quit because it made her feel too tired. I can completely relate to someone not following “sensible” medical advice because emotionally, they just can’t. For outsiders, this can be frustrating and hard to understand. I understand, though. Momo gets it, too. This film celebrates comfort and showcases the concept that people don’t have to be perfect to be worthy of love or (for that matter) to be able to make a difference by showing love. Momo is young and makes a lot of mistakes. What matters more is what he chooses to do right.
The cinematography is not showy, but it is lovely. (Being in Italy helps.) The film looks beautiful. The score is similarly pleasant and effective but unobtrusive. The soundtrack on the other hand is…very obtrusive. Songs constantly break in to reveal mood or highlight a particular character’s interior emotions. Somehow eleven-time nominee Diane Warren managed to write the film’s big showcased song. When I saw her name in the end credits, I burst out laughing. “How in the world did Diane Warren manage to write this song?” I demanded. I mean, it’s in Italian. It’s a lovely song. That just tickled the Oscar buff in me. I immediately thought of Mr. Burns taking over every TV show and acting it out himself until Homer agrees to give back his bear Bobo. Until she wins that Oscar, Diane Warren will write a song for every Oscar contender that she possibly can. In all seriousness, though, I liked the song. I hope she wins an Oscar.
What I really like about the movie is its casual warmth. It touches on topics often seen in Oscar bait–the Holocaust, sex workers, trans people seeking acceptance from parents, the ravages of old age, what it’s like to be an immigrant, what it’s like to be Jewish/Muslim in a predominantly Christian country. The list goes on and on. But often a film hoping for an Oscar will take one of these topics and focus on it to the exclusion of all else, making the film either so melodramatic or so genuinely tragic that it’s almost unwatchable. That’s not what happens here. The film shows us what life is like, rather than showing us what various filters frequently insist life is like. (The news, entertainment, social media–these things so often show us a warped version of reality. They’re all very good at highlighting the worst of human beings, the evil, callousness, and combativeness of human beings.) The Life Ahead shows us that there is hope for humanity, after all. We can, in fact, all just get along if we–you know–get along, embrace each other (for our strengths and despite our weaknesses), and stop fearing that people who are actually essentially just like us are somehow terrifyingly different.
Abril Zamora plays Lola. She’s introduced casually. She’s a friend, a neighbor, another sex worker. Madame Rosa takes care of her young son while she works. Lola is trustworthy, a safe, kind, warm person, loving and full of life and joy. That she’s transgender is not hidden, but all the details of her life are mentioned casually in conversation, the way friends would talk about any of their concerns. The film’s method of letting us slowly get to know the characters as if they are just friends we’re meeting is sort of refreshing.
The movie shows us Mr. Hamil (Babak Karimi) in the same way. He’s Muslim. His faith and culture are clearly very important to him, but he gets the same kind of casual introduction. Clearly Madame Rosa has thought of introducing the boy to him because they’re both Muslim, and she hopes Mr. Hamil will be a good influence. But she doesn’t say these things so pointedly. Her graciousness is quite disarming (and also effectively manipulative which Mr. Hamil obviously notices but doesn’t resent because he likes her).
Frankly, at a time of such distressing division and contention in our country (and our world, too, I suppose), it is both refreshing and encouraging to see people getting along with each other, helping each other, and forming a community simply because they are neighbors. The characters here form relationships based on mutual kindness and respect. They also make compensations for one another’s frailties in a very human way. Watching this film gives you the idea that “human” is a positive adjective, that humanity has a lot to offer, that people are, at heart, as good as they can be. And that is good enough.
Even the drug dealer doesn’t seem like such a bad guy. He is definitely using Momo and leading him down a dark path, but even he wants to be friends. He comes across as less sinister than broken himself.
Loren’s performance is the kind of acting I like, not showy but thoroughly convincing. She’s so beautiful. I really admire the way that her performance shows us that beauty is not much about superficial qualities. She doesn’t try to look young. She shows us what is beautiful about being older. (I mean, obviously Sophia Loren has always been gorgeous, but I’m not talking about looks. Too often, the beauty of older people is not celebrated, but someone who has lived and suffered has qualities that the young and innocent have not yet cultivated.)
Ultimately, this film is about finding points of connection. Momo and Madame Rosa understand each other. For a moment, their journeys overlap. And this film lets us share that moment with them.
Best Scene:
I love the moment when Madame Rosa wanders off, and Momo finds her sitting by herself and immediately explains what has happened to Lola. His show of the protectiveness he feels towards her there simultaneously reveals his own vulnerability.
Best Action Sequence:
I so love the first time we meet Lola (not the very first scene, but the moment when Momo meets her). She exudes warmth, and it is clear that being around Madame Rosa and her child makes her feel incredibly happy and safe. It’s just a nice moment to watch.
Best Scene Visually:
Momo’s dance of happiness is delightful to watch, too. (This review makes it sound like half the movie is people dancing around joyfully. That’s probably misleading. This film will make you cry.) Ibrahima Gueye has possibly the most infectious smile I have ever seen. I hope I get to see his future projects. I love watching the careers of talented child actors, but I assume Gueye does not speak English, so I’m not sure how much of his work I will be able to see.
Most Oscar Worthy Moment, Sophia Loren:
The moment when Loren first explains to Momo what makes her feel safe resonated so strongly with me.
I also love the time when the boys find her in the rain.
Most Oscar Worthy Moment, Ibrahima Gueye:
Gueye is a wonderful child actor. He has a marvelously expressive face, a fantastic smile. I was so impressed by the scene in which Momo begins selling drugs. I said to my husband, “How does he do that? How does he let them know like that?” His body language is incredible.
I also love the moment when he climbs into bed with Iosif (Iosif Diego Pirvu).
The Negatives:
I liked the concept of the lioness, but I did not particularly care for the look of her. There’s nothing wrong with the way she’s rendered, but she doesn’t look real. Knowing that she isn’t real makes that work better than it would otherwise, of course.
The main thing that I wanted that the film didn’t quite give me was more time with Sophia Loren. She’s excellent in every one of her scenes. I wish she had more scenes. And this isn’t just a compliment disguised as a criticism. I do think we need to see more of what makes Momo turn. I’d like to see the bond between him and Madame Rosa develop more slowly. At just over 90 minutes, this excellent film is far too short. We get enough of the early moments when she feels suspicious and resentful of Momo. And we get a beautiful ending celebrating their friendship. But I would like the transition to get more screen time. (Can’t anyone ever be happy for more than one day?)
Overall:
I hope Sophia Loren does win another Oscar, or at least that she gets a nomination. Being awarded for a performance directed by your own son must be very special. I wish my mother had lived longer. I love her so much.