Watch The First Full-Length Trailer For Paul Verhoeven's Benedetta
Whether it's the transgressive thrills of "Basic Instinct" or the bloody satire of "Starship Troopers," Dutch director Paul Verhoeven is known for his controversial and boundary-pushing blockbusters. And it looks like he's got another doozy on his hands with "Benedetta."
Set in 17th century Italy, the film tells the story of a nun named Benedetta (Virginie Efira) who is visited by mystical religious visions that stir up controversy and apocalyptic speculation in her community. To complicate matters further, Benedetta also begins an affair with another woman that is, to put it mildly, frowned upon by her superiors in the Catholic church. The film was inspired by an actual historical figure and was adapted from a non-fiction book by historian Judith C. Brown descriptively titled "Immodest Acts: The Life of a Lesbian Nun in Renaissance Italy."
The movie has been making the festival rounds and has received strong reviews for, as Todd McCarthy of Deadline put it, its ability to "mix the serious and provocative with humor and self-conscious outrageousness." If that particular blend sounds intoxicating then you're in luck. Ahead of its December 3 release in the US, a full-length trailer has arrived to give us a tease of what "Benedetta" has in store.
The trailer for Benedetta teases forbidden romance and mystic premonitions
The trailer for "Benedetta" wastes no time in letting the viewer know exactly what kind of movie they are in for. We see our protagonist in her habit out in a field when a man's voice calls her name. She turns around to see none other than Jesus Christ (Jonathan Couzinié) himself, standing on a hill shepherding a flock of sheep. Benedetta runs to him but, of course, this is merely one of her infamous visions.
As the trailer goes on, it fleshes out the gist of the narrative. Benedetta's visions become more visceral and gain her notice from the church, a new woman joins the convent with whom Benedetta begins to have an affair, and the appearance of a comet has everyone wondering if they are on the verge of the end of days. Throughout there are teases of the provocative and gleefully outlandish nature of the film. Where else are you going to see Jesus Christ rescuing a woman by slicing apart a nest of vipers that has gathered at her feet?
"Benedetta" is scheduled to hit select theaters and VOD on December 3.