A Special Day - The quiet victims of fascism (Film Essay)

A video/film essay where i explore the two main characters, Antonietta and Gabrielle (played by Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni) in Ettore Scolas masterpiece, A Special Day. When films explore fascism, it’s often by retelling its most shocking events, the focus tends to be placed on the battlegrounds, or the carnage in concentration camps. Focusing on the most dramatic and horrifying elements is one way of dismantling this ideology but what a special day does is far more scathing. Instead, this film follows two neighbours who live mostly innocuous lives, both miserable, both alone and both the quiet victims of fascism. Our characters may not be in concentration camps but they too are shattered under Mussolini’s boot. Music Salve Regina - Arvo Part Casta Diva (Piano) - Bellini Prelude in E minor - Chopin World to Come IV - David Lang