Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)
Pier Paolo Pasolini is the man who made one of the most beautifully disturbing films of all time. Now there are so many people who would easily skip this film considering its premises and theme and visuals but that's what makes this film a remarkable piece of art. Now as influential as Pasolini is, his last film Salò made some noises, made some things move, and became one of the most controversial films ever made.
Based on the book The 120 Days of Sodom by Marquis de Sade And loosely inspired by the real events of the Republic of Salò in Northern Italy towards the time of the end of the Second World War.
In the film, we see about the end of World War 2 a bunch of extremely wealthy and powerful fascist men with some retired prostitutes and soldiers capture 18 boys and girls on a ratio of 1:1. They take those underaged boys to a private palace, where they torture them, physical, mentally and sexually. The rules and rituals were traumatizing, haunting and deadly. The visuals are disturbing, to some extent disgusting too. But after all this, why is this film so important?
To feel the importance of this film, we have to understand the filmmaker. Pier Paolo Pasolini, the man who was known for his violent depiction of human behavior, and the sexual desire of humankind in the most absurd ways possible. We see in the film, that the prostitute shares her life experience with wealthy men and what they enjoy. She tells the stories of rich society and its darker desires, the disgust, the filth covered with money, corruption, and greed. Now Pasolini is not showing us the torture of those young boys and girls, but the torture we as a general audience feel watching this film. He shows us that even watching it makes our Soul tremble, what might have been the scenario for those innocent people at the time of war.
But then one might ask is this film relevant enough? I'd say yes, till this date this film is relevant enough. At the end of the film, we don't see an ending, we don't see any conclusion, and we don't have any justice for the work of the rich, because there isn't. They have money, they have power, and they always get away with everything.
How Pasolini portrays the wrath and filth of the fascist society in this film is remarkable, unforgettable, and bold. The depiction of people's helplessness, sorrow, desire, lust, and greed for power is uncanny and beautiful.
I'd recommend to everyone, to watch this film. Even if it makes you puke, watch it. At your own risk, lol.
My rating for this film would be a good 4.5/5
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