The Hand of God (2021)

The Hand of God (2021)

A fun ode to Naples from Paolo Sorrentino

8.0

Movie

Italy
Italian
Comedy, Drama
2021
PAOLO SORRENTINO
Alessandro Bressanello, Alfonso Perugini, Betti Pedrazzi
130 min

What it's about

In 1980s Naples, Italy, an awkward Italian teen struggling to find his place experiences heartbreak and liberation after he's inadvertently saved from a freak accident by football legend Diego Maradona.

The take

The Hand of God is the autobiographical movie from Paolo Sarrantino, the director of the 2013 masterpiece The Great Beauty. He recently also directed The Young Pope with Jude Law and Youth Paul Dano, both in English. He is back to his home Italy with this one. 

More precisely, he’s in his hometown Naples, in the 1980s, where awkward teenager Fabietto Schisa’s life is about to change: his city’s soccer team Napoli is buying the biggest footballer at the time, Diego Maradona.

Sarrantino, who is also from Naples, made this movie that is half a tribute to the city and half to what it meant growing up around the legend of Maradona.

The Hand of God is to Sarrantino what Roma was to Alfonso Cuarón, except it’s more vulgar, fun, and excessive. It is equally as personal though, and it goes from comedy to tragedy and back with unmatched ease.

Comments

Add a comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

Happy as Lazzaro (2018)

A witty Italian comedy

7.5

Mid-August Lunch (2009)

A gorgeous, warm Italian comedy about a special kind of sleepover

8.1

The Collini Case (2019)

A very satisfying German legal drama

7.6

A Fortunate Man (2018)

7.5

The Best of Youth (2003)

7.1

Nuovo Olimpo (2023)

A lost love LGBTQ+ drama that doesn’t dive into its potent themes

6.5

The Eight Mountains (2022)

An ode to male friendship and self-discovery amidst the stunning vista of the Italian Alps

8.0

The Divine Order (2017)

A light and humorous drama that explores how Swiss women could not vote until 1971

7.1

The Pig, the Snake and the Pigeon (2023)

A dying criminal kills to be the most wanted in this Taiwanese Western-esque gangster drama

7.5

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.