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FACING WINDOWS Send This Review to a Friend
Although not reaching enough depth to be a special artistic achievement, the Italian import “Facing Windows” is imaginative and engrossing in its depiction of longings and the effect people can have on each other. Director Ferzan Ozpetek, who co-wrote the screenplay with Gianni Romoli, is unmistakably talented.
The film begins with a stabbing in a bakery shop, an event only explained late in the story. The time jumps forward, and we meet Giovanna, played by attractive Giovanna Mezzogiorno, who is married, has two children and is not happy with her husband. From a window across from hers, Lorenzo (Raoul Bova), takes to gazing at her and becomes enamored of her. He begins to hunger for her love.
Meanwhile, Giovanna’s husband (Filippo Nigro), notices Simone (Massimo Giroti) an elderly, disoriented man in the street. Filippo comes to his aid and offers him shelter at home. As the story thickens, Simone begins to have an influence on Giovanna. There is something charming and kind about him. Giovanna has wanted to be a pastry chef, and there is a lovely meshing of her dream with Simone’s nearly forgotten skills. The story deals with the road to Simone’s recovering his memory, and Giovanna discovering what she wants after Lorenzo makes his move.
The quality of the performances, the underlying mystery and the undertow of sexual tension combine to make the film compelling and entertaining. A Sony Pictures Classics release.
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