Parthenope (film)

Last updated

Parthenope
Parthenope 2024 film poster.jpg
Release poster
Directed by Paolo Sorrentino
Written byPaolo Sorrentino
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Daria D'Antonio
Edited by Cristiano Travaglioli
Music by Lele Marchitelli
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • 21 May 2024 (2024-05-21)(Cannes)
  • 24 October 2024 (2024-10-24)(Italy)
  • 12 March 2025 (2025-03-12)(France)
Running time
136 minutes
Countries
  • Italy
  • France
Languages
  • Italian
  • Neapolitan
  • English
Budget€32.6 million [1]
Box office$11.7 million [2]

Parthenope is a 2024 coming-of-age drama film written, produced, and directed by Paolo Sorrentino. [3] An international co-production between Italy and France, the film stars Celeste Dalla Porta, Stefania Sandrelli, Gary Oldman, Silvio Orlando, Luisa Ranieri, Peppe Lanzetta, and Isabella Ferrari.

Contents

Parthenope was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered on 21 May 2024. It was theatrically released in Italy by PiperFilm on 24 October 2024. It has received mixed reviews.

Plot

In 1950, the affluent Di Sangro family awaits the birth of their daughter in the waters of Posillipo. The birth is attended by her wealthy godfather Achille Lauro, her older brother Raimondo, and Sandrino, the son of the family's housekeeper. Achille gives her the name Parthenope in honour of the city of Naples.

In 1968, Sandrino is obssessed with Parthenope, and Raimondo is incestuously attached to her. Parthenope attends an anthropology course taught by Professor Devoto Marotta, known for his severity. She challenges Marotta during an evaluation of her knowledge and they develop mutual respect.

In 1973, Raimondo suggests to Parthenope and Sandrino that they go to Capri. Parthenope’s carefree behaviour attracts the attention of many people, including the writer John Cheever, whose work she has read. Raimondo ingratiates himself with an heiress, but cannot kiss her and realises he loves only Parthenope. After Sandrino seduces Parthenope, Raimondo throws himself from the cliffs of Capri.

In 1974, Parthenope's father and mother blame her for Raimondo's death. She asks Marotta to advise her on an anthropology dissertation about suicide. He instead suggests researching the cultural impact of miracles. Parthenope briefly interrupts her studies and tries to become an actress. First, she sees the acting teacher Flora Malva, an elderly diva who directs her to Greta Cool, an actress who shares Parthenope's Neapolitan origins. At a party in Greta's honour, Parthenope meets Roberto Criscuolo, a mafioso who takes her to a family ritual, in which the heirs of two Camorra families conceive a child to mark unity. Parthenope later becomes pregnant by Criscuolo, but procures an abortion. Sandrino declares his love and she reacts by blaming him for Raimondo's death.

In 1982, Parthenope is a scholar. She receives a request from an anthropology magazine to write an article on the liquefaction of the blood of San Gennaro. Marotta warns her about Cardinal Tesorone, calling him a “scoundrel”. Tesorone asks her to have sex with him and Parthenope accepts. Marotta tells Parthenope that he aims to retire, and suggests that she apply for a teaching position at the University of Trento. At first Parthenope refuses, because of her love for Naples. Marotta introduces her to his disabled son. Parthenope seems fascinated by Marotta's son and remains in Trento.

In 2023, as she is retiring from academia, Parthenope discusses with two students the profound impact she had on their lives and briefly answers their questions about her personal life. She visits Capri, remembering her youth, then returns to Naples. Parthenope smiles as a passing group of fans celebrate SSC Napoli’s third Serie A championship.

Cast

Production

Sorrentino has said the film is about a woman named Parthenope "who bears the name of her city but is neither siren", like the mythical figure of the same name (who gave her name to the city Parthenope, the antique predecessor of modern-day Naples), "nor myth". [4]

Parthenope was co-produced by Lorenzo Mieli for Fremantle's The Apartment Pictures and Ardavan Safaee for Pathé, in association with Sorrentino's Numero 10, PiperFilm, Anthony Vaccarello's Saint Laurent Productions, and Logical Content Ventures. [5] In August 2023, Gary Oldman was announced as part of the cast. [6]

Principal photography took place in Naples and Capri. [3] Sorrentino worked with cinematographer Daria D'Antonio, who also shot The Hand of God . [7]

Release

Parthenope was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 21 May 2024 [8] [9] and earned a nine-and-a-half minute standing ovation at the end of its screening. [10]

Before the film’s Cannes premiere, A24 acquired its North American distribution rights. [11] In May 2024, the formation of a new Italian distribution and international sales company named PiperFilm was announced, with Netflix as its partner for the post-theatrical window and with agreement reached with Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia for operational theatrical distribution of its films. Parthenope was PiperFilm's first acquisition, and was released on 24 October 2024. [5] [12] The film was theatrically released on 12 March 2025 in France by Pathé, [13] which also handled international sales. [14] A24 gave the film a limited theatrical release beginning on 7 February 2025 in New York City and Los Angeles. [15] [16] Picturehouse Entertainment theatrically released the film in the UK and Ireland on 2 May 2025. [17]

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 46% of 98 critics' reviews are positive.The website's consensus reads: "Equal parts sumptuous and vapid, Parthenope gains some radiance thanks to Celeste Dalla Porta's arresting performance but frustratingly finds writer-director Paolo Sorrentino out of his depth." [18] Metacritic , which uses a weighted average , assigned the film a score of 52 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. [19]

The Guardian 's Peter Bradshaw called the film "facile" and "conceited", accusing Sorrentino of "pure self-parody" and likening the film to a long-form advertisement for expensive cologne. [20] [21] Cineuropa 's Davide Abbatescianni called it Sorrentino's "less accomplished feature film, technically impeccable but narratively weak”, adding that Dalla Porta's character "is too cryptic", making the audience "struggle to understand her behaviour, her arrogance and audacity, and the many bombastic and didactic conversations she's part of." [22]

The New York Times 's Beatrice Loayza called the film a "one-sided meditation on art, desire and spirituality" and noted Sorrentino's "lack of interest in realism—or political correctness for that matter". Loayza praised Sorrentino’s opulent style and "big ideas" but criticized him for being "more interested in deifying Parthenope than he is in humanizing her […] the portrait is inherently limited." [23]

Accolades

List of awards and nominations for Parthenope
Award or film festivalDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
Cannes Film Festival 25 May 2024 Palme d'Or Paolo Sorrentino Nominated [24]
CST Award for Best Artist-Technician Daria D'Antonio Won [25]
Manaki Brothers Film Festival 27 September 2024Golden Camera 300Nominated [26]
Capri Hollywood International Film Festival 2 January 2025Capri Breakout Actor Award Peppe Lanzetta Won [27]

References

  1. "Database works" . Retrieved 23 April 2025.
  2. "Parthenope (2024)". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  3. 1 2 Wiseman, Andreas (24 November 2023). "Paolo Sorrentino: First Images Revealed Of New Movie Starring Gary Oldman, Celeste Dalla Porta, Luisa Ranieri & More". Deadline . Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  4. Vivarelli, Nick (23 June 2023). "Paolo Sorrentino's New Movie Heads Back to Naples, For Love Letter to His Native City (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety . Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  5. 1 2 Vivarelli, Nick (19 May 2024). "New Italian Label PiperFilm Launches With Paolo Sorrentino's 'Parthenope' and Post-Theatrical Window Deal With Netflix". Variety . Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  6. Vivarelli, Nick (30 August 2023). "Gary Oldman Joins Cast of Paolo Sorrentino's New Untitled Film, a Love Letter to His Native Naples". Variety . Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  7. Camillo De Marco, Camillo (26 June 2023). "Paolo Sorrentino's tenth film is a love letter to Naples". Cineuropa . Retrieved 28 April 2024.
  8. "The Screenings Guide of the 77th Festival de Cannes". Festival de Cannes. 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  9. "Cannes Film Festival Reveals Lineup: Coppola, Cronenberg, Lanthimos, Schrader and Donald Trump Portrait 'The Apprentice' in Competition". Variety . 11 April 2024.
  10. Vivarelli, Nick; Shafer, Ellise (21 May 2024). "Gary Oldman and Paolo Sorrentino Embrace as 'Parthenope' Gets 9.5-Minute Standing Ovation at Cannes Film Festival". Variety . Retrieved 22 May 2024.
  11. D'Alessandro, Anthony (3 May 2024). "Paolo Sorrentino's 'Parthenope' Gets Snapped Up By A24 Ahead Of Cannes Film Festival World Premiere". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  12. "PiperFilm, parte da Paolo Sorrentino la sfida dei nuovi film italiani" . la Repubblica (in Italian). 3 July 2024. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
  13. "Parthenope" (in French). Pathé . Retrieved 4 November 2024.
  14. Goodfellow, Melanie; Wiseman, Andreas (21 May 2024). "Paolo Sorrentino's 'Parthenope' Sells Around The World For Pathé Ahead Of Cannes Film Festival Premiere". Deadline . Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  15. Vivarelli, Nick (21 November 2024). "'Parthenope' Trailer: Paolo Sorrentino Pens a Love Letter to Naples in Decades-Spanning Drama as A24 Plans U.S. Release for Next Year". Variety . Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  16. @A24 (24 January 2025). "Plunge into PARTHENOPE, a new film from writer/director Paolo Sorrentino starring the sublime Celeste Dalla Porta. Opening in NY & LA February 7 with additional cities to follow" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  17. "Parthenope". dcm.co.uk.
  18. "Parthenope". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango Media . Retrieved 18 July 2025. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  19. "Parthenope". Metacritic . Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
  20. Bradshaw, Peter (22 May 2024). "Parthenope review – Paolo Sorrentino contrives a facile, bikini-clad self-parody". The Guardian . Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  21. Bradshaw, Peter (24 May 2024). "The most political apolitical festival ever? Here's how Cannes 2024 went – and who will win". The Guardian . Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  22. Abbatescianni, Davide (22 May 2024). "Review: Parthenope". Cineuropa . Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  23. "'Parthenope' Review: Goddess Worship". The New York Times . 6 February 2025.
  24. Ntim, Zac (11 April 2024). "Cannes Film Festival Lineup Set: Competition Includes Coppola, Audiard, Cronenberg, Arnold, Lanthimos, Sorrentino & Abbasi's Trump Movie — Full List". Deadline . Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  25. "Parthenope". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  26. "OFFICIAL SELECTION 'CAMERA 300' – Manaki Brothers" . Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  27. "29th Capri Hollywood International Film Festival Winners: 'Emilia Pérez' Dominates With Six Wins Including Best Picture And Best Actress". Capri Film Festival (in Italian). 2 January 2025. Retrieved 28 March 2025.