Swept Away... by an Unusual Destiny in the Blue Sea of August

Molto bene. CIne di multo inportante. The English subtitle translation is very broad and not true to the reality. Italian speakers find it extremely vulgar and demeaning.

As I recall we liked it.

One of the best masters of italian movies

The breathtaking sea somewhere off the coast of Southern Italy is the setting for Lina Wertmuller's 1974 classic film, "Swept Away..." Raffaelle and Gennarino meet by chance on a chartered yacht. Raffaele is rich and entitled. Gennarino is a poor boat mate working on the yacht. There is a world of difference in their economic and social status. In a dinghy on a routine day trip off the yacht, Raffaelle and Gennarino find themselves adrift at sea due to engine trouble, arriving at last on a deserted island. Raffaelle, played adroitly by a young Mariangela Melato and Gennarino, played by a young and fit Giancarlo Giannini, final their social and economic situations in society mean nothing in their island isolation, and proceed to adapt to life without outside strictures. Wertmuller skillfully intertwines several conflicting themes over the course of the film: man versus woman, love versus hate, loyalty versus betrayal, fantasy versus reality, North Italian prosperity versus South Italian poverty. At the time of it's production, Italy and the U.S. are undergoing major shifts in societal norms, particularly in the respective roles of men and women. Wertmuller seems keenly aware of these changes and frames her themes in broad comedic gesturing. Raffaele and Gennarino are almost charicatures. Still the sensibilities of audiences in 1974 are vastly different from today's audiences. The comedic gesturing frequently uses violence: physical, verbal and sexual and falls flat as a comedy today, as a result. (Audiences of Wertmuller's "Love and Anarchy", also includes violence, the the eariler time frame and the lesser volume of violence mitigates it's impact. 'Swept Away,,," is a 1970's fantasy, skillfully directed and acted, in a gorgeous seaside setting. It is definitely worth seeing as a reflection of the societal upheaval of the time filtered through the eyes of a masterful female director, then as now, a rare point of view.

This movie didn't stand the test of time. Back when it first aired it is deemed as a comedy, now I think its a good conversation started on violence against women. What was funny then isn't funny now. When watching this movie we must also take note of the culture difference of the time in Italy. Between the north and south and the politics of the time.

Italy has always been a little . . . different when it comes to gender politics. This film is one more example. This had it's somewhat comical moments, but it's hard to watch a woman being slapped into submission. She had a bad attitude, that is for sure, but violence is not the most believable way to depict the beginning of a true love affair. The ending might have redeemed all that, but as I interpret it, she really did love him, and it was only the realities of class that pulled her away. In other words, what transpired before was no act merely done for survival.

Wertmuller made something genuinely confounding here with class and gender dynamics colliding in the strangest ways. The results are often shocking to a modern sensibility but that is the point. Anyone who dismisses this out of hand is going to miss out on a truly unique movie.

Forget the tawdry remake and the many meet cute films of this kind Swept Away spawned, this is a must watch film for any lover of film, philosophy and sociology. For those in search of a little romance, Swept Away can be seen as a love story, albeit an unconventional one. Its approach will disturb some - that a woman can fall in love with a man who abuses her, both physically and emotionally. However, those who criticize the film on this level are ignoring two important points. First, the female actually starts the abuse with her constant berating of the male on the yacht. Secondly, this "romance" is not taking place in anything resembling a civilized situation - by virtue of their circumstances, the characters have been thrown back into a setting that mimics prehistoric times, when survival (of the individual and of the species) dictated coupling. This is great cinema whether you like comedy, drama or just plain thinking.

Forget the tawdry remake and the many meet cute films of this kind Swept Away spawned, this is a must watch film for any lover of film, philosophy and sociology. For those in search of a little romance, Swept Away can be seen as a love story, albeit an unconventional one. Its approach will disturb some - that a woman can fall in love with a man who abuses her, both physically and emotionally. However, those who criticize the film on this level are ignoring two important points. First, the female actually starts the abuse with her constant berating of the male on the yacht. Secondly, this "romance" is not taking place in anything resembling a civilized situation - by virtue of their circumstances, the characters have been thrown back into a setting that mimics prehistoric times, when survival (of the individual and of the species) dictated coupling. This is great cinema whether you like comedy, drama or just plain thinking.

One of the best movies ever made, thanks to the powerful thought-provoking script by Lina Wertmuller and two incredible performances by Giannini and Melato.