Director Eros Puglielli has concocted a strange and bewitching slice of existential entertainment: think an Italian I Heart Huckabees and you won’t go too far wrong. When two strangers – wheelchair-bound Claudio and wannabe popstar Marco – are witness to a visitation by a strange being of light, they both set off to discover the truth. Was it a trick of the light? Or was it an alien, an angel or something more? The lonely but independent Claudio goes to live with his cousin, a philosophy student with a crush on her way-too-old, way-too-married lecturer, whilst Marco becomes the lead singer of a zany pop band. Their inane, insane quests for knowledge and enlightenment are at the core of this whimsical philosophical farce. It’s a bizarre mix of styles, but one that yields much enjoyment. From academics and occultists to UFO-obsessives and mystic monks, the plot remains surprising throughout, cheerfully blending spirituality and philosophy with suspense. But what dominates is a light-hearted tone of playfulness. A scene where Marco is told that his popularity will fall if his teeny-bopper fans discover that he is an ‘intellectual’ is juxtaposed with theories of different realities and the works of Immanuel Kant. And it’s all topped off by scenes of long-haired popstars running around in skintight black leotards. Serious this isn’t, but anarchic and original it certainly is. JG
