Turkish-born Ferzan Özpetek has long been Italy's most prominent gay film maker, but his films have always missed a certain something. They are extremely well made with gorgeous photography. Özpetek was the first to revive the aesthetic qualities of Italian cinema with "Hamam" (1997), which would later be perfected by the likes of Sorrentino and Guadagnino. But his films have lacked character depth, and had interesting themes but remained superficial. His greatest film so far was definitely "Le fate ignoranti" (2001) but that was because of the extraordinary acting of Margherita Buy who became a star because of it.
In "Nuovo Olimpo", however, he finally puts his talents to work on a largely autobiographical story. The imagery of Rome, the location setting, the contemporary look of the male leads, their moving back and forth from each other, the incidental quality of gay encounters, the specific Italian sexual ambiguity, and even the sex scenes are perfect. Because Özpetek invests his own emotions of the time, you can actually FEEL them. Only a handful of gay-themed period pieces have achieved this blend of nostalgic reminiscence and romantic storytelling.
The one weakness of the film is female characters, which is a problem of most gay directors apart from Almodóvar (whose female roles are his films biggest strength). Precisely because the emotional world of the two male leads is so well observed, the similarity and sometimes stereotypical behavior of the film's women becomes a bit of a burden (and in the end descends into outright kitsch). They all share a similar look and way of thinking which keeps the film from becoming flawless. Still, it's far and away the best gay-themed movie since "Call me by your Name".
In "Nuovo Olimpo", however, he finally puts his talents to work on a largely autobiographical story. The imagery of Rome, the location setting, the contemporary look of the male leads, their moving back and forth from each other, the incidental quality of gay encounters, the specific Italian sexual ambiguity, and even the sex scenes are perfect. Because Özpetek invests his own emotions of the time, you can actually FEEL them. Only a handful of gay-themed period pieces have achieved this blend of nostalgic reminiscence and romantic storytelling.
The one weakness of the film is female characters, which is a problem of most gay directors apart from Almodóvar (whose female roles are his films biggest strength). Precisely because the emotional world of the two male leads is so well observed, the similarity and sometimes stereotypical behavior of the film's women becomes a bit of a burden (and in the end descends into outright kitsch). They all share a similar look and way of thinking which keeps the film from becoming flawless. Still, it's far and away the best gay-themed movie since "Call me by your Name".