COMING SOON
ArtBeats: Flesh and Bronze
In 1972, two mysterious bronze warriors emerged from the sea off the coast of Riace, Calabria, after two thousand years underwater. This dreamlike documentary traces half a century of history surrounding the Riace Bronzes—among the world's best-preserved ancient statues—blending archaeology, local folklore, and the turbulent social upheaval of 1970s southern Italy.
Director
Fabio Mollo & Alessandra Cataleta
CAST
Antonio Alì • Damiano Bevilacqua • Anzhela Brailo • Daniele Castrizio • Stefano Mariottini
RATING
RUNTIME
1h 34m
COUNTRY
Italy
GENRE
Documentary
LANGUAGE
Italian (with English subtitles)
WATCH TRAILER
FILM NOTES
A poetic meditation on art, history, and the enduring human longing for beauty.
Premiering at the 2023 Venice International Film Festival, Flesh and Bronze (original title Semidei) is a captivating documentary from Italian filmmakers Fabio Mollo and Alessandra Cataleta. The film centres on the Bronzi di Riace, two ancient Greek bronze statues discovered in 1972 off the Ionian coast of Calabria—among the twentieth century's most significant archaeological finds. Blending archival footage, first-hand testimony, and contemporary interviews, the documentary weaves together the statues' mysterious origins with the social and political turmoil of 1970s Calabria, including the Reggio Revolt and the region's complex cultural history.
This is a richly atmospheric, contemplative film that rewards viewers who enjoy art, history, and documentary storytelling with a poetic edge. Rather than a straightforward archaeology lesson, Flesh and Bronze invites audiences into a dreamlike meditation on how objects from the distant past can shape a community's identity, hopes, and sense of the future. Drawing on the philosophy of Georges Didi-Huberman, the film asks whether we might glimpse tomorrow by gazing back at artefacts from 2,500 years ago. A love letter to Calabria and its people, this is essential viewing for anyone drawn to the intersection of art, place, and memory.
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ArtBeats: Flesh and Bronze
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