Reaper

Reaper

Next to the quiet Tiber River in a Roman park lies the body of a dead prostitute. But who is the killer? This is the story of Bernardo Bertolucci’s The Grim Reaper. And grim it is. This Italian ‘whodunnit’ is drawn out with lengthy scenes, but manages to find salvation with some beautiful shots of the Roman scenery.

To discover who the murderer is, the police question the men who were seen in the park around the time the prostitute was killed. From a soldier, a thieving teenager to two young lotharios, the police have their work cut out for them. They put each suspect quite literally in the spotlight to tell their side of the story, which inevitably intertwine with their fellow suspects’.

Each story is shown one by one, which unfortunately becomes increasingly tedious throughout. One lengthy scene in particular follows soldier Teodoro (Midgette) through his day site-seeing in Rome. He creepily chases after young women in the street and goes on tours around Rome before making his way to the park. The scene features limited dialogue and following him seems pointless as he aimlessly wanders around. Similarly with quarrelling couple Bustelli (Leggi) and Esperia (Giorgelli); their relationship problems add nothing to the story. However it is mildly entertaining seeing Esperia put her cheating, freeloading boyfriend in his place.

The emphasis on the Roman scenery however, makes the film much more watchable. As the camera pans around Rome it captures old buildings, the Colosseum and features some beautiful overhead shots of the city. The narrative finally picks up towards the end, as the intensity heightens when the police finally spring into action; chasing down who they believe to be the killer.

The most entertaining performance comes from Giorgelli. Clearly part of a matriarchal family, she exerts power and confidence and there’s no doubt that she wears the trousers when it comes to her relationship with Bustelli. She proves to be a merciless landlady, banging down the doors of those who haven’t paid their rent. Giorgelli is fiery in her role and her explosive outbursts are welcome from what is essentially a slow-paced narrative.

The Grim Reaper unfortunately fails to hit the mark and isn’t as thrilling as it should be. The individual stories of the characters become distracting and it becomes easy to forget that you’re watching a murder mystery. That said, the beautiful shots of Rome really are worth seeing.

Release Date (UK DVD) – 25 April 2011Certificate (UK) – 15
Country – Italy
Runtime – 93 mins
Director – Bernardo BertolucciStarring – Alfreddo Leggi, Gabriella Giorgelli and Allen Midgette

Reaper