The other day, talking about The Norseman, a film I have yet to see, I asked if there was anything more to it than the trailer suggests. I say this because, whilst in that instance, the jury would appear to be mixed, in the case of Benedetta, there is undoubtedly more to it than what it says on the tin. The publicity for the movie, another period piece, makes hay with the film’s salacious angle. Lesbian nuns always seems to be a selling point. Verhoeven’s film lives up to these elements and more, with plenty of tremulous sex and fantasy scenes. What run of the mill girl growing up in the shadow of the Black Death didn’t want to get it on with Jesus, the movie would appear to suggest. And if you can’t have Jesus, a shapely fellow nun is the next best thing. All of this is indeed over-the-top, ribald fun. However, there’s a hint of a more intellectual verve at play, particularly given the Covid context this film has emerged into. Supposedly based on a true story, the film closes with the revelation that the town which the more humanist Benedetta became abbess of, was one of the few places to survive the Black Death unscathed. Is there a correlation between sin and the damnation of plague? Did the plague come to us because we have lost touch with our raw feelings and emotions, our base humanity, in this material world? Benedetta doesn’t answer any of these questions, but they do float around in the background. The director himself seems to be testing the limits, deliberately presenting images which to some might be as shocking as Benedetta’s actions were to her contemporaries. You can, of course, ignore all of this, and go along for the well crafted and enjoyable ride, but it feels as though there’s more to Verhoeven’s game than sheer hedonism.
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