26/01/2023 - Paolo Genovese returns to plumb the human soul with a tale between the real and the metaphysical about second chances

Initially supposed to be set in New York and star an international cast (read the interview) before the pandemic upset all these plans, the new film by Paolo Genovese The First Day of My Life [+see also:
trailer
film profile], completed two years ago, finally arrives in Italian cinemas (from 26 January with Medusa Film). Based on the book of the same name written by Genovese and whose action has necessarily been moved from the Big Apple to Rome, it now has an all-Italian star cast. A story marked by magical realism, which once again has at its centre a mysterious man who somehow guides the destinies of other people (as in The Place [+see also:
film review
trailer
making of
film profile], the 2017 film of the director sold in 70 countries) and which confirms Genovese's interest (whose success Perfect Strangers [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] has been remade a record number of 21 times around the world) in deep subjects that stimulate reflection and help change one's perspective on things.

Changing perspective is precisely the central theme of this new work by the Roman director, which revolves around four characters of different ages and experiences, united by the desire to end it all. Arianna (Margherita Buy) is a policewoman living with unbearable grief; Napoleone (Valerio Mastandrea) is a professional motivator who can no longer motivate himself; Emilia (Sara Serraiocco) is a gymnast who has ended up in a wheelchair; Daniele (12-year-old Gabriele Cristini) is an overweight and bullied baby influencer. Toni Servillo, as a mysterious nameless character, loads them all into his old car on the night when, in the pouring rain, they decide to end their lives ('I always saw the glass as half full, until God pissed in it,' Arianna sums up). The man gives them a week to give themselves a second chance, to fall back in love with life and save themselves – a sort of limbo in which the four protagonists are allowed to observe what the world would be like without them and, above all, to take a small glimpse at their future, should they decide to return to life.

Day after day, these four dead men walking are alternately confronted with their traumas, urged to relativise their pain and savour life again (in the true sense of the word, as they are initially deprived of their senses, which they then gradually regain), because once you have hit rock bottom, you can always rise again. Initially mistrustful of each other, the four would-be suicides begin to sympathise and make new connections with each other, but, predictably, not all of them will be able to reverse their decisions and re-emerge from their darkness. Predictability is a bit of a blemish on this work, along with a couple of unconvincing suicide motivations that prevent the viewer from empathising with the respective characters, but the excellent performances, all in subtraction (the cast includes Giorgio Tirabassi, Vittoria Puccini and Lidia Vitale, among others), the setting in an almost unrecognisable nocturnal Rome (that of the dilapidated hotels around Termini station) and Genovese's unquestionable talent for crafting introspective stories for the general public, make The First Day of My Life a curious film to watch and one with an international flavour.

The First Day of My Life is produced by Lotus Production in association with Medusa Film. International sales are handled by True Colours.

(Translated from Italian)