The Consequences of Love (2004) - Paolo Sorrentino

Titta Di Girolam is a middle-aged former stockbroker who now makes his living working as a money-man for the Mafia.  A few times a week he handles large bank deposits for the Mafia but otherwise his life is barren.  Di Girolam lives secluded in a hotel room with much of his days being spent in the hotel's cocktail lounge where he silently watches the beautiful barmaid, Sofia.  When Di Girolam's outgoing brother, Valerio, comes in town to visit, he gives Di Girolam the much needed push to begin interacting with Sofia.  Paolo Sorrentino's Consequences of Love is a well-made character study that thoroughly explores one man's loneliness and detachment from the world around him.  Di Girolam is a man whose all alone, being divorced and cut off from his former children.  One of the film's most impressive attributes is the stream of conscious it's able to achieve.  This is a man tormented by his past failings, terrified of the future consequences of potential companionship and the film does a great job at capturing his over-active mind.  This is a well-written piece of filmmaking too, which gives great detail and insight into the character to the point that the audience really feels like they know this guy, or at least understands him.  The camera work is damn near surgical, with very precise camera movements and compositions that really give the film a unique atmospheric feel.  The use of wide open space is particularly well done, effectively capturing the loneliness Titta Di Girolamo exudes.  A large depth of frame is also used quite a lot, capturing the distance in which Di Girolamo puts himself from the rest of the world.  The relationship that unfolds between the main protagonist and Sophia is balanced well, never getting too much in the way of the character-study aspect of the film.  Sofia gives Di Girolamo a reason to live, but the film does not go the route most would expect.  Paolo Sorrentino's Consequences of Love is a exquisitely crafted character study of a man whose been broken down by life, with the connection between him and Sofia giving him a reason to exist. 
8.25/10

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