Bernardo Bertolucci's La Luna is beautifully shot but somewhat twisted tale. It stars Jill Clayburgh as a recently widowed American opera diva Caterina and Matthew Barry as Joe, her drug addicted son. The story takes place in Italy after the death of Joe's father (played by Herman Munster Fred Gwynne - he was really underrated).

Oedipal conflicts abound in Italy exacerbated by Joe's grief over his father's death and his mother's inability to help him or herself deal with it (she is so work centric that she is barely affected by it). She's a famous opera singer and is gearing up for new productions of various Verdi works. The film mostly follows Joe and his angst though his early teenage period. This period is difficult enough, but having to cope with paternal grief a maternal attraction and revulsion - well drug addiction isn't that suprising a result and as the film progresses we understand Joe's pain more and more.

This is a beautifully shot and well acted drama (with a subplot I didn't want to give away) by one the great directors. This film is rare and I'm glad I could see it finally.

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You can email here if you want a copy of La Luna which isn't available in the US. I will trade an NTSC DVD for an item on my amazon wishlist.

Coming next...Bernardo Bertolucci's The Dreamers