Page - 132 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 04/02

Review: 71st Locarno Film Festival | 131www.jrfm.eu 2018, 4/2, 127–131 INQUISITION IN THE STYLE OF THE RENAISSANCE Opposition to religious authorities is also a strong element in the Italian film Menocchio (Alberto Fasulo, IT/RO 2018). The miller Menocchio lives in a village in Friuli, Italy, at the end of the 16th century. He is a charismatic person with significant influence on the inhabitants of his village – greater than that of the priest. His beliefs and convictions are not consistent with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. He calls for poverty and respect for nature. Menocchio testifies with conviction before a court that he does not accept authority and feels himself to be the equal of the Pope. He is close to be burned at the stake when, at the end of the film, he recants. Although he is no longer to die, he is imprisoned for life for his heresies. Director Alberto Fasulo stages the story of the heretic in an expressive chia- roscuro style, with the strong contrasting of light and dark known from Renais- sance paintings of the 16th century. Many scenes take place in the prison or at night. Only in court are the images bright, but light does not lead to the truth. The film is based on historical records and reports about the trial, but it also de- velops a unique view of the protagonist whereby Menocchio becomes a mod- ern, agnostic figure. He thinks for himself and risks his life and the lives of his companions and family to stand up for his own convictions. TRANSCENDENTAL STYLE IN A PASSION STORY In First Reformed (Paul Schrader, US 2017), the American actor Ethan Hawke plays a pastor who experiences a profound existential and spiritual crisis. As an alcoholic, he is harming his health, but he rejects any help. His encounter with a young couple of environmentalists confronts him with this existential abyss, but he also discovers new meaning in his work. He wants to resolve the existen- tial and environmental problems of the world through radical action taken on the occasion of the 250th anniversary of his church, the historically significant First Reformed community in New York State. With his transcendental style, Paul Schrader provides a strong film in First Reformed. At the presentation of the film in Locarno, Ethan Hawke stated: “A film should be like a big bell that strikes you and follows you when you leave the cinema.” Stylistically, director Paul Schrader draws on Bergman and Bresson. Nattvardsgästerna (Winter Light, Ingmar Bergman, SE 1962) is an important point of reference, with its pastor and the depiction of his existential crisis. Rob- ert Bresson’s Journal d’un curé de campagne (Diary of a Country Priest, FR 1951) was also an inspiration for this film. With First Reformed, Paul Schrader, a leading American filmmaker, is at his zenith. Ever since his theoretical reflec- tions on the “transcendental style” in the 1970s, Schrader, who is informed by