Don’t Hang Up: The Review of the Film with Claudio Santamaria

Often the simplest ideas are the most difficult to realize, and that’s why Don’t hang upthe film of Manfred Lucibello written by the latter together with Jacob of the Judgeis a little gem not to be missed. Following the example of Lockethe film by Steven Knight with Tom Hardy presented in Venice in 2013, also in Don’t hang up the time of the story coincides with that of the narrative, not to mention the location chosen for the action: the interior of a car driving on the highway at night. Driving it is Ireneplayed by an extraordinary Barbara Ronchia woman who is woken up in the middle of the night by an unexpected phone call. On the other end of the smartphone is Pietro, the ex that Irene hasn’t heard from since their stormy relationship ended and who appears to the woman restless and in an evident state of confusion: he called Irene to hear her voice one last time, and that’s why she decides to get out of bed, get dressed and take the car to reach him before he does something stupid and it’s too late.

There are, however, two problems: we are in the middle of the first lockdownthe one where to go out a self-certification was needed to validate the movement, and the journey that separates Irene from Pietro is not that short. Irene, however, chooses not to care and to do everything in her power to try to save Pietro.taking care not to tell the latter that he is about to join him and to ask him only one request: don’t hang upstaying on the phone with her until she reaches him to make sure she doesn’t hurt herself. We understand that, put like that, the plot of the film may seem static and lazy, but we assure you that there is no shortage of adrenalinealso because it is very easy to put yourself in Irene’s shoes and imagine helping her to face the many obstacles she will encounter on her path, from a nearly flat phone battery to a tank to fill without a wallet, passing through the checks of the police patrols and a palpable anxiety and tension because arriving a moment later will be enough to risk losing Pietro and having made a wasted journey.

The direction of Lucibello, already behind a very underrated film like All my nightsis lucid and surgical, accompanied by the soundtrack composed by Motta and from the charisma and skill of Ronchi and Claudio Santamaria who lends her voice to Pietro, demonstrating her value because holding a film of one hour and twenty minutes showing the nuances of personality and the state of mind of a character without the aid of one’s own body is no small feat. Whether Irene will reach Pietro in time we will not tell you, even if it is evident that this film, a production Mompracem with Rai Cinemaproduced by Carlo Macchitella, Pier Giorgio Bellocchio and the Manetti Bros., is a perfect title for the summer cinemawhich leads us to go to the cinema not only to benefit from the effects of the air conditioning but also to immerse ourselves in a story that captures us from beginning to end. To all the Italians who think that our cinema dares little and always focuses on convenient solutions, we recommend, in short, to see Don’t hang up and try to change your mind, because the work done to make this captivating and engaging film it’s absolutely amazing.