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In Memory of Me (2006)

Director: Saverio Costanzo

Time Out rating

Average user rating

6 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out London

A short boat trip from Venice, the island monastery of San Giorgio Maggiore is the imposing location for this spiritual drama, in which arrival Andrea (Christo Jivkov) settles in to the discipline of study and contemplation in the hope of finding new meaning in his life. As the stern Father Superior (Andrea Hennicke) soon makes clear however, the path to inner peace involves a regime of aggressive group questioning and an aura of rivalry and suspicion amplified by the spooky oppressiveness of the huge edifice’s echoing corridors. With its emphasis on the austerity of routine, and its frequent visual reminders of Venice out of reach across the water, this atmospheric affair resembles a bizarre combination of ‘Into Great Silence’ and ‘Escape from Alcatraz’ yet never manages to turn its ascetic soul-searching into an accessible dilemma. Those undergoing some similar Catholic ferment might tune into its wavelength, otherwise it’s a film to be admired from without, though swathes of choral music (an ill-advised Viscontian foray into Mahler excepted) convey a haunting, sepulchral vibe.

Author: Trevor Johnston

Time Out London Issue 1942: November 7-13 2007

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User reviews of this film

Arthavadin said...

Posted on Apr 04 2010 02:08 Visually beautiful, sparse and emotionally cool; the cavernous, hard and echoing spaces; the shifts between darkness and light; as well as the pervasive silence and minimal (but powerful) interactions create an inviting canvass for the viewer's projections. I'm not sure that I completely understood the main character, and I'm not sure that this mattered!

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ebony said...

Posted on Mar 30 2010 21:05 it put me to sleep

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Lucy said...

Posted on Mar 30 2010 16:49 a cold and depressing start to the film, but i warmed to the film the more i got to know the character's true personalities and the whole concept. Look out for the dialogue, the philosophy was enchanting and deep.

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tom said...

Posted on Mar 29 2010 22:52 WHAT A YAWN-FEST

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Conall O'Cuinn SJ said...

Posted on Nov 02 2008 10:26 As one who has gone through a Jesuit novitiate, and stayed, some of the scenes are echoes from the past. I entered the year Saverio Costanzo was born. But for me the film shows only one side of Jesuit novitiate life, namely the silence of the 30-day retreat. Missing is the human warmth, the camaraderie, and the dialogue, the shared cosmic vision, the mission in the real world. Only at the end of the film does anyone smile, one as he leaves, the other as he stays. That is not my experience of religious life. Of course the novitiate is a time when both the novice and the order interview each other, but my experience was one of much more open exploration and dialogue. So as a portrayal of a real Jesuit novitiate, I do not recommend the movie. Nevertheless, it is outstanding for both its beauty and the existential questions raised and explored.

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Rachel Nd Annie said...

Posted on Nov 08 2007 11:10 This film was splendid. A treat for the eyes!! I've been to see it three times and I would go again anyday. 10/10

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