In Alice Rohrwacher's film, 'Happy as Lazzaro', a group of peasants live in semi-slavery in the 1990s Italy, held in thrall by an aristocratic (but themselves impoverished) family who shield them from the world. Eventually, the state rescues them, only to abandon them to modern life. The eponynous Lazzaro, a holy fool, falls from a cliff and is left behind; twenty years later, a savage but gentle wolf returns him to life and he heads to the city and rediscovers his kindred. He also discovers that in some senses nothing has changed, as even their former oppressors still abuse them in the hierarchy of poverty. The combination of magic realism and ignorance reminded me of Kusturica, although the tone here is far quieter than any of his movies. The film ultimately offers no explanation of its plot, but there's a sense of underlying truthfulness, and profound melancholia, throughout.
Review of Happy as Lazzaro
