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REVIEW
The Flesh
Genre: Drama, Romance, Classic
Year Released: 1991, PinkLabel.TV 2021
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director(s): Marco Ferreri
Writer(s): Liliane Betti, Massimo Bucchi, Paolo Costella, Marco Ferreri
Cast: Francesca Dellera, Petra Reinhardt, Philippe Leotard, Sergio Castellitto
Language: Italian with English subtitles
Where To Watch: available now, stream here: www.pinklabel.tv
RAVING REVIEW: Marco Ferreri is a filmmaker who doesn’t shy away from confrontation. In THE FLESH, he combines romantic comedy with elements that test limits and unsettle expectations. The story pulls together humor, eroticism, and religious motifs in a way that provokes more than it soothes. It’s an odd mix that pushes viewers to think about how desire and obsession distort the way people relate to each other.
Paolo is a pianist, and life post-divorce has left him drifting. Sergio Castellitto plays him with a worn-down energy that captures the feeling of being emotionally stuck. Over time, Paolo shifts from passive and lost to consumed by fixation, and Castellitto lets that transition unfold without exaggeration.
Then comes Francesca, portrayed by Francesca Dellera. She’s not written as a grounded character but rather as an idea. She enters Paolo’s world like a dream he can’t wake up from. Dellera matches that concept with presence alone, but the script doesn’t give her much interior space. Her role serves Paolo’s narrative more than her own, and the film loses something by not exploring her point of view.
The structure of THE FLESH jumps between tones. One moment, it's absurd; the next, it's quiet or unnerving. That unpredictability has its uses—it reflects Paolo’s unstable experience—but can also cause scenes to feel disconnected. A clearer focus might have tied the themes and characters more tightly together.
Religion becomes a recurring theme in the film. Paolo’s feelings for Francesca begin as romantic but shift into something closer to worship. His paralysis—both physical and emotional—mirrors how obsession can erase a person’s will. The story treats this not as just a personal problem but as something that mirrors broader ideas about power and submission.
The film’s visual style leans on contrast. Some shots are stripped down and raw, while others feel stylized or surreal. Religious imagery sits side-by-side with explicit scenes, challenging the viewer to make sense of their overlap. The soundtrack moves between musical styles that underline those emotional shifts.
Castellitto brings consistency to the experience. He handles Paolo’s downward spiral without pushing it too far. Dellera, working with less dialogue and development, gives the camera exactly what the character is supposed to represent. Their interactions capture the imbalance at the heart of the story.
Ferreri uses recurring images to support the story. Storks, rituals, and even unsettling moments of consumption all feed into the film’s themes. These aren’t subtle, but they aren’t random, either. They reflect Paolo’s anxieties about connection, responsibility, and giving yourself to someone else.
THE FLESH doesn’t always tie everything together neatly but doesn’t seem interested in tidy conclusions. It aims to confront its subject directly. Ferreri uses humor not to comfort but to expose, and when the story feels excessive or strange, it usually means it’s hitting close to something uncomfortable.
Ferreri avoids easy answers. THE FLESH steps into complicated emotional territory and stays there. It doesn’t need to justify its choices; it presents them and leaves the reaction up to the audience. Even if parts feel underdeveloped or scattered, the film stays with you.
What makes it work isn’t polish or precision—Ferreri commits to the ideas he wants to explore. He strips the story down to obsession, identity, and power dynamics. Some moments feel messy or out of sync, but that unevenness matches the characters’ emotional chaos.
It’s not built for comfort. It asks a lot from the viewer, and while it doesn’t answer every question it raises, it’s not trying to. THE FLESH is raw and specific, with scenes that leave you thinking long after it ends.
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[photo courtesy of PINKLABEL.TV, CULT EPICS]
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