Come Undone (Cosa voglio di più) is an Italian romantic drama released in 2010 and directed by Silvio Soldini. The film casts Alba Rohrwacher alongside Pierfrancesco Favino and Giuseppe Battiston, depicting an emotionally charged narrative centered on the intertwining human experiences of infidelity and desire and how ordinary lives can unravel. Set in Milan, the film vividly portrays the intimate, everyday life of two individuals in a relationship marked by a fervent passion that is neither anticipated nor fully comprehended.
Plot Summary
Anna is an accountant in Milan is in her 30’s. Employed by an insurance company, she has a stable long-term relationship with a boyfriend named Alessio. The couple shares a modest apartment, and Alessio is keen on starting a family. While Anna’s life is steady and secure, there is an underlying emotional disquiet beneath her quiet daily routines.
Domenico, a headwaiter at a restaurant, attends the workplace party and meets Anna. Their first interaction may be marked as awkward but there is undeniable chemistry. Domenico and Anna soon transform the relationship into a passionate affair. In the eyes of the society, Domenico is a family man as a married individual with two children. Predictably, like Anna, his life is monotonously rooted in the mundane, but there is also a sense of being stifled by the everyday predictable routine.
What starts as a brief interlude evolves into a fully developed relationship characterized by secretive encounters, frantic conversations, and emotional upheaval. The couples in love rendezvous in abandoned buildings, cars, and quiet urban locales, concealing their relationship from everyone. Yet, the more addicted they become, the more entangled their lives transform.
Anna begins to pull away from Alessio, who, though more concerned about her emotional withdrawal, remains oblivious to the relationship’s growing distance. At the same time, Domenico’s spouse starts to notice his unusual activities, creating domestic conflict. Both Anna and Domenico struggle with the push and pull of their obligations and longings, not quite able to unlink themselves from their lives, yet unwilling to relinquish their connection to one another.
With the affair deepening, emotional strife starts to take the toll on both of the characters. Their interactions are steeped in guilt, shame, longing, and confusion. The film eschews spectacle and melodrama; rather, it captures moments of stillness filled with yearning and discomfort that borders on the excruciating. Ultimately, the affair reaches an intensely emotional cappuccino. Anna elects to end it, coming to the understanding that the life she envisioned with Domenico is ultimately unattainable. The film’s concluding frames depict quiet ambiguity, leaving relaters to consider if the aftermath will be defined by healing or regret.
Main Characters and Performances
Anna (Alba Rohrwacher): A professional woman embroiled in a whirlwind of emotions that threaten to shatter her life’s structure. Rohrwacher gives a nuanced performance embodying a woman emotionally imprisoned yet profoundly yearning for something beyond her life. Her portrayal is marked by restraint, yet that makes Anna’s struggle palpable.
Domenico (Pierfrancesco Favino): A man of working-class roots trying to manage familial responsibilities while seeking emotional refuge. Favino’s performance is rich with physicality and emotional depth. He depicts Domenico as a charismatic yet tormented figure caught between the demanding role of a husband and father and the yearning for freedom to escape those responsibilities.
Alessio (Giuseppe Battiston): Anna’s husband, who brings balance and structure to her life. Battiston brings warmth and vulnerability to the role. His character is not a villain, but a good man caught in a situation he doesn’t fully grasp until it is far too late.
Miriam (Teresa Saponangelo): Domenico’s wife, a woman of poise and day-to-day perseverance. She may be a peripheral character, but her role adds to the tension surrounding the affair, underscoring the lives that are truly upended by invisibility and duplicity.
Direction and Style
Come Undone is brandished with the stylistic and thematic features of director Soldini, who is known for his tender, character-driven films and stories. The film’s pacing parallels the progression of desire as it transitions from flirtation to obsession, finally culminating in disillusionment.
Ramiro Civita’s cinematography is suggestive, employing soft focus to evoke the character’s inner states and using dim lighting and muted color palettes. Much of the action takes place in intimate spaces such as bedrooms and bathrooms, creating a sense of claustrophobia and confinement. The city of Milan, though always in the background, does not intrude on the narrative; it serves quietly as an observer to the characters’ emotional journeys.
The soundtrack for the film, composed by Giovanni Venosta, is restrained and subtle, complementing the melancholy and tension without inflating it further. Viewers are allowed to sit with the characters’ discomfort and indecision through the effective use of silence.
Themes
Desire vs. Responsibility
The film revolves around the conflict of devotion and longing. Both Anna and Domenico are conflicted; they yearn to be together, but their fused obligations and expectations weigh heavily on them.
The Fragility of Routine
Soldini explores the fragility of the framework of everyday existence. Love, marriage, and stability are not presented as solid anchors; rather, these are undermined quietly by a singular moment of longing or an emotional need.
Emotional Isolation
In the midst of people, Anna and Domenico feel fundamentally alone. Their affair lacks lust; instead, it is driven by a search for an emotional connection, even if only for a moment.
Ambiguity of Consequences
In Come Undone, there is no clear moral stance, which is what makes the film fascinating. The characters do not receive judgment; they are treated with empathy and realism. Rather than providing tidy resolutions, the film offers a contemplation of the complex and messy nature of human desire.
Reception and Legacy
Come Undone gained critical acclaim, particularly due to the naturalistic performances and emotional depth of the film. The chemistry and nuance between Alba Rohrwacher and Pierfrancesco Favino drew specific praise. The film’s avoidance of the melodramatic essence that is common in infidelity stories was refreshing. Instead, the film focused on the subtle emotional shifts that tempt ordinary people to betray and deceive.
The film received the Grand Prix at the Cabourg Film Festival in 2010 and screened at a number of other international festivals, showcasing its appeal beyond Italy. This film is considered by many to be one of Silvio Soldini’s most powerful films, in particular for the way he examined contemporary relationships in a grounded yet sympathetic manner.
Conclusion
This film is a painful yet beautiful examination of love, desire, infidelity, and the emotional cost attached to it. The careful direction and performances combined with the realistic tone draw the viewer into deeply contemplating the fragility of trust alongside yearning.
This film does not focus on the archetypes of heroes and villains; rather it follows normal individuals ensnared by very intense emotions. Come Undone vividly encapsulates the nuanced ways in which desire slowly erodes the habits of a mundane existence, depicting a shard of life transformed by the impact of an emotional fracture.
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