Director Saverio Costanzo’s film Finally Dawn revives Cinecittà, Italy’s iconic film studio, immersing viewers in 1950s Rome to explore the complexities behind the glamour. Premiering in 2023 at the Venice Film Festival, the movie stars Lily James and delves into themes of fame, deception, and a notorious real-life murder, presenting a rich yet conflicted vision of Italian cinema’s past.
A Journey Into Postwar Italian Cinema Through a Young Girl’s Eyes
Finally Dawn opens with a gripping black-and-white scene where a young girl is rescued by a soldier, immediately paying tribute to the style of post-World War II Italian cinema. This moment acts as a movie within the movie, swiftly transitioning to color where a mother and her two daughters watch the film in a theater. The mother expresses disdain for the harsh neorealist films of the era, remarking,
“all this ugly stuff in your face, as if the war wasn’t enough.”
—mother
Among the daughters, Mimosa, played by Rebecca Antonaci, is captivated by the allure of movies despite her modest appearance. Her sister, more conventionally beautiful, is cast as an extra at Cinecittà and subjected to the darker demands of the film industry. Mimosa accompanies her sister but resists compromising herself and is temporarily expelled from the production. However, she soon returns as the handmaiden to the lead actress Josephine Esperanto, portrayed by Lily James, who ironically does not speak Italian despite her character’s name.
Mimosa’s introduction to the glamorous yet harrowing behind-the-scenes world escalates when Josephine invites her to a decadent night filled with dancing, secrets, and deception, involving co-star Sean Lockwood (Joe Keery) and their driver Rufus Priori (Willem Dafoe). This dreamlike evening is shadowed by the haunting presence of Wilma Montesi, a real woman and Cinecittà extra who was mysteriously murdered in 1953, lending an eerie tension to the story.
Promises Fizzled: When Intrigue Meets Overload
Despite clocking in at two hours, Finally Dawn struggles with pacing and thematic focus, overburdened by its ambitions. While the film deftly sets the stage for suspense through moments like Josephine demanding Mimosa perform as a Swedish poet for wealthy guests—a scene packed with palpable discomfort and social tension—it often lets moments drag longer than necessary. The early portions of the film, particularly the chaotic scenes on the set of the deliberately poorly acted Egyptian film, successfully build a sense of spectacle and suspense.
However, as the plot advances, the film loses cohesion. The multiple threads—fame’s dark realities, societal cruelty, Mimosa’s personal growth, and the unresolved murder mystery—remain underdeveloped. The film attempts to expose the misogyny ingrained in the film industry but only skims the surface. Mimosa’s transformation feels inconsistent, vacillating between naivety and experienced disillusionment, diminishing the impact of her character arc. Meanwhile, the murder of Wilma Montesi, a chilling historical underpinning, adds a shadow of menace but never fully penetrates the narrative with meaningful effect.
An unexpected casting note is the presence of Pierce Brosnan in a remake, though his role in this original iteration is minimal.
Visual Excellence Anchors the Uneasy Storytelling
Visually, Finally Dawn is a masterpiece that transports audiences to its era through sumptuous cinematic craft. Director Costanzo honors Italian cinema’s legacy with evocative imagery, guided by Sayombhu Mukdeeprom’s cinematography, which captures the contrast between 1950s Rome’s romantic streets and the lurid, carnival-like parties where scandals unfold. Massimo Martellotta’s soundtrack further deepens the immersive atmosphere, heightening the film‘s haunting and extravagant mood.
The film’s stylistic choices incorporate bursts of surrealism reminiscent of Federico Fellini’s dreamlike approach, adding texture yet sometimes distracting from narrative clarity. These surreal moments create a dazzling aesthetic but contribute to uneven storytelling and narrative pacing issues. Ultimately, the dazzling visuals highlight the film’s ambitions but cannot fully mask the weaknesses beneath its glossy surface.
Lily James Delivers Captivating Performances Amid Turmoil
Lily James stands out with commanding screen presence, embodying Josephine Esperanto as a complex figure straddling Hollywood glamour and the darker realities of fame. Her interactions with Mimosa reveal a mixture of charisma and menace, adding depth to the film’s exploration of power dynamics on set and behind closed doors. James’s performance anchors the film’s emotional core and elevates many scenes, offering moments that linger despite the story’s uneven contours.
