Esterno notte

In his masterpiece Buongiorno, notte (2003), Marco Bellocchio already tackled the 1978 kidnapping of politician Aldo Moro by the Red Brigades – concentrating on what happened inside the terrorists' flat. In Esterno notte, conceived as a TV series in six chapters, the filmmaker expands the exploration of this crucial episode in Italian history by offering us a kaleidoscopic view of the events happening in the exterior during Moro’s captivity.

Esterno notte traces a complex spider web that includes political intrigues within Moro’s Christian Democrat party; the role played by clergymen, advisers, and other political forces; the intervention of the Pope; splits inside the Red Brigades; and the actions of Moro’s family. The distinctive aspect of Bellocchio’s incursions into historico-political affairs is his desire to give credit to the psychic realm: the outer world can only be understood in all its poignancy if also examined from an inner perspective. Symbols, archetypes, dreams and fantasies expose the kernel of conflicts: a badly twisted flag; a bleeding map of Rome; the paintings presiding over offices and beds; a descent into the family crypt; the figures of Christ and the Father… Riveting and absorbing, Esterno notte is an outstanding lesson in cinema.

– Cristina Álvarez López

This film is part of the vfonds Freedomline. Click here for an overview of the other films that have been selected for the vfonds Freedomline.