ST. ALi Italian Film Festival 2022 Film Review - The Shadow of the Day
Images courtesy of the ST. ALi Italian Film Festival.
When we think of World War II, and especially the films made to depict it, we’ve got our German stuff, American, English… you know, the usuals… So, it’s easy for something like Shadow of the Day to sneak up out of nowhere and remind me of how bad of a time it was for Italy as well. Mussolini inspired Hitler for a reason, and Shadow of the Day sees Anna, a Jewish woman attempting to remain off the radar, has to suffer the hardships of genuine fascism in the streets of Ascoli Piceno, Italy.
I’ve found myself reading war books lately and I’ve noticed that the build-up to war can be just as intense as the full throngs of battle. You don’t necessarily need to see Harry Styles washed up on Dunkirk or Liam Neeson making lists and supplying munitions to the battle raging around him, with Shadow of the Day director L’Ombra Del Giorno sinks into the foggy ambiguity of pre-war paranoia, heightened by a frightful degree as old-school Italian fascism begins to root out the persecuted.
Light brushes of history sprinkled throughout the dialogue presents a surrealist atmosphere, such as when Mussolini can be heard delivering an address on a distant radio or sarcastic fodder between protagonists making light of Hitler’s tour through town. The fact that these dictator’s presence is felt but never seen adds an intense weight to the severity of the position that our human smugglers find themselves in, without detracting from their story by including what would basically chalk up to a cameo appearance of the loathed tyrants.
War is presented similarly as a foundational component of the era, slowly creeping into the forefront of the narrative as conscripts begin plucking patriots from the street, absently discussed in the restaurant where we spend most of the film with Luciano, a veteran with lingering injuries from the last war he fought. His time in the military is carefully examined throughout this picture as his patriotism, veering into fascism, is challenged by the humanity found in his enemies, the state’s enemies.
What does it mean to be a patriot? Would you betray your country in favour of the human race? If you ever get faced with this ultimate choice, pray you are not in WWII, because the choice is apparently not a very easy one.
The Shadow of the Day is screening as part of the 2022 ST. ALi Italian Film Festival which runs 13th September to 16th October. For tickets and more info, click here.