Naples in Veils [Napoli Velata] ** (2017, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Alessandro Borghi, Anna Bonaiuto) – Classic Movie Review 12,802

Ferzan Özpetek’s bold but baffling 2017 mystery thriller Naples in Veils [Napoli Velata] centres on Adriana (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), a Naples medical examiner seduced by a handsome younger man, who turns up dead next day. 

Turkish-Italian filmmaker Ferzan Özpetek’s bold and brazen but baffling 2017 ghost story mystery thriller Naples in Veils [Napoli Velata] centres on Adriana (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), a 40something Naples post-mortem medical examiner who is seduced by handsome younger man Andrea (Alessandro Borghi) and spends a torrid sex-filled night with him at her place.

Andrea asks Adriana to meet again that afternoon at the museum, but he does not show up. Next day, Adriana discovers that the young man she is carrying out a post-mortem examination on is Andrea, victim of a violent murder. Then Adriana keeps seeing a man who looks like Andrea around town, and a police officer starts taking a personal interest in Adriana.

Alas, what starts very promisingly as a teasing mystery thriller turns into a puzzlingly cryptic freewheeling series of musings about magic, superstition, madness, love and death. Özpetek makes Naples seem very alluring, and Giovanna Mezzogiorno makes Adriana a formidable screen presence. The star is fascinating, while Alessandro Borghi is purely decorative but is well cast.

Özpetek turns in his usual smart and polished film, but it seems to lack focus and drift away from him. Nevertheless, it is an elegant film with a Vertigo vibe, a strong sense of style and some very striking moments.

The cast are Giovanna Mezzogiorno as Adriana / Isabella, Alessandro Borghi as Andrea Galderisi / Luca, Anna Bonaiuto as Adele, Peppe Barra as Pasquale, Luisa Ranieri as Catena, Maria Pia Calzone as Rosaria, Lina Sastri as Ludovica, Isabella Ferrari as Valeria, and Loredana Cannata as Liliana.

The film runs 113 minutes.

The film was released in Italian cinemas on 28 December 2017, and on Blu-ray and DVD on 23 April 2019.

Giovanna Mezzogiorno stars in Özpetek’s Facing Windows (2003).

Luisa Ranieri plays Maricla in Özpetek’s 2014 Fasten Your Seatbelts and Titti in Özpetek’s 2023 Nuovo Olimpo.

The films of Ferzan Özpetek: Hamam (1997), Harem Suare (1999), The Ignorant Fairies (2001), Facing Windows (2003), Cuore Sacro (2004), Saturn in Opposition (2007), A Perfect Day (2008), Loose Cannons (2010), A Magnificent Haunting [Magnificent Presence] (2012), Fasten Your Seatbelts (2014), Red Istanbul (2017), Naples in Veils (2017), The Goddess of Fortune (2019), Nuovo Olimpo (2023). Also the TV series The Ignorant Angels (2022).

© Derek Winnert 2024 – Classic Movie Review 12,802

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