THE STORY – A mother arrives at her daughter’s apartment during a storm to confess a lie that undermines their family’s foundation, leading to an unraveling relationship between them.
THE CAST – Jasmine Trinca, Romana Maggiora Vergano, Adriano Giannini & Valeria Bruni Tedeschi
THE TEAM – Paolo Strippoli (Director/Co-writer) & Salvatore De Chirico (Co-writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 115 Minutes
An unfortunate accident happens to a seemingly picture-perfect family in Paolo Strippoli’s twisty “The Spiral (L’estranea),” but that’s only the start of their troubles. Through a chance encounter with a mysterious woman who gives off Italian Aunt Gladys vibes, the matriarch will have to learn the hard way that when given the chance to change fate, that also means you have to accept the consequences. Strippoli’s genre film is an entertaining ride through the very end, keeping audiences glued to the screen as it slowly reveals a mystical story. But be warned, certain plot points also make it a tiring and uncomfortable watch.
On a stormy day, Anna (Jasmine Trinca) decides to visit her adult daughter Alice (Romana Maggiora Vergano) in Rome completely unannounced. Of course, this upsets Alice, who already has a strained relationship with her mother (which will be revealed over time), but things only get worse once the two start talking. Today is judgment day for this family, and Anna has quite the story to get off her chest. Through flashbacks spanning nearly three decades, screenwriters Strippoli and Salvatore De Chirico reveal an insane story full of chance, mystery, secrets, and many bad endings. All we can say to prepare you is: buckle up.
More than 20 years ago, Anna, Alice (Gabriella Telegrafo), father Walter (Adriano Giannini), and son Tobia (Alessandro Carbonara) lived a beautiful life together, full of lavish home furnishings and parties. On one fateful day, however, everything changed when the family dog attacked Alice, bit into her leg, and caused serious damage (the reveal will give you the heebie-jeebies). At the hospital, she was either going to come away with scars or an amputated leg, and Anna could not take that chance, especially just as Alice’s acting career was about to take off. Right when she needs a saving grace, in walks a sort of angel of death: an unnamed stranger (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi) who is electrifying from the start. There’s something about her that makes you want to run in terror when she tells Anna what the future holds for her daughter, but is also very disarming when she starts dropping hilarious lines. Much like Aunt Gladys from “Weapons,” we don’t know anything about her or if she’s telling the truth when she says she can fix things, but when in the presence of someone as kooky as she is, would you ever risk it? Anna accepts, even though she’s aware of the consequences: While her daughter’s leg will be saved, her son will … get fat?
From there, this film heads into quite an uncomfortable and fatphobic section when the stranger’s curse catches up to him. As Tobia does indeed gain weight at a fast rate, his family can’t stand to look at him; he’s relentlessly bullied by others, and he’s labeled nothing more than a fat, ugly pig. It gets to a point where his depression and lack of self-worth are used as the punchline to some sick joke. That’s just disgusting and irresponsible filmmaking. This section will definitely lose people; it might even turn them off of this completely, and it’s understandable why. For those who do push through it, there’s plenty more witchy fun coming from Tedeschi, who has the time of her life tormenting Anna, and it’s an absolute delight to watch. She drops hilarious one-liners like it’s all one big joke, and the way Tedeschi plays up this woman’s indifference is just magic. Unfortunately, it’s not that fun for the family because Anna keeps trusting the stranger whenever times get tough, leading to additional horrible fates. Eventually, though, the cyclical pattern that Anna finds herself in may run its course with viewers. But what remains fun throughout the runtime is spotting all the spiral shapes and references in the background, some more clever and subtle than others.
With each decision that Anna makes, it’s interesting to see how her character never stops to fully understand what she’s risking in the process. It reveals someone who wants to keep up the appearance that everything in her life is perfect and get through it all unscathed. When she’s faced with the first decision, it is certainly valiant that she would do anything to save her daughter’s leg. However, she makes that decision with her daughter’s acting career first and foremost in mind, without thinking through everything, like how she could be endangering her son. She later reveals that she wanted to be an actress when she was younger, but because her parents didn’t allow it, she’s pushing her daughter to do it, which is another classic narcissistic tendency. Even in the present day, when she drops in on Alice and unloads so much family history on her, she’s there with her own goal in mind, showing that this woman simply never learns until it’s too late. Trinca delivers on all aspects of this character, especially as her tale only gets more complex and requires her to lose her grip on reality. Her scenes opposite Tedeschi are always a treat, with “Not this woman again!” written all over her face. The screenplay, unfortunately, doesn’t explore the inner workings of the other family members as much, which is a shame given that interesting storylines emerge as Alice and Tobia grow older.
“The Spiral” has definite flaws and ugly features, but it’s also a fun thriller that brings unhinged madness to the screen. The less you know going into it, the better, because Strippoli crafts a true popcorn flick with twists and turns that keep audiences guessing. Plus, it doesn’t get much better than watching Italian Aunt Gladys’ hijinks, all brought to life by the great Tedeschi.
