La chimera

Synopsis

Arthur heads a motley crew of troubadours who moonlight in plundering Etruscan treasures. Like an archaeological dowser, he has an uncanny knack for locating underground tombs containing ancient remains—a similar pull to the yearning he still feels for his long-lost love.

“What should we do with the past?” asks director Alice Rohrwacher, driven by her own fascination with the interplay between the sacred and the profane, life and death. Here she once again rummages in the ruins of a society inhabited by shady rogues as we accompany Arthur on his downward spiral. By speeding up and slowing down the drama at will, and using three different film formats, Rohrwacher weaves together a fable bearing the scars of the past.

Biography and Films

Alice Rohrwacher (Fiesole, Florence, 1981) studied history of religions, literatura and philosophy at the Università degli Studi di Torino and remained in Turin to specialise in screenwriting at the Scuola Holden. After writing the screenplay for Corpo celeste, she resolved to direct it herself, without any formal training. It premiered at the 2011 Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes,  where she has become a festival regular and made a name for herself as a director to watch. She was back in Cannes three years later with Le meraviglie, which won the Grand Prix, and in 2019 Lazzaro felice won Best Screenplay. La chimera was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2023.