La chimera ★★

Arthur (Josh O’Connor) has an unusual gift. He has a knack for being able to find Etruscan artifacts, often through use of a divining rod. What does that make him? By occupation, an archaeologist, by reputation, a grave robber. La chimera begins with Arthur being released from prison for stealing artifacts from his digs. In fact, all of his digs represent thievery. Arthur discovers where the artifacts are buried and his group of his friends excavate along with him. They then sell their findings to a patron who auctions off the artifacts to wealthy customers. Director Alice Rohrwacher doesn’t linger on this concept, but there’s some commentary here between the lines.

Arthur’s group of friends are a merry bunch – they are the tomborali – with camaraderie and singing to boot. By contrast, Arthur is subdued in emotion. He has experienced the death of his lover Benjamina (Yile Vianello) and often dreams of her. Arthur wears exclusively beige clothing and often appears listless. He feels disconnected from his friends despite being their leader. Arthur is most expressive when finding ruins; the experience is akin to a rousing spiritual awakening. When he uncovers an immaculately preserved statue he is speechless until the sound of sirens breaks his trance and the tomborali lop off the head of the statue to take with them. The scene reminds viewers that Arthur and his friends are vandals, and that any awe or sense of discovery comes at a loss. They are not career archaeologists, and are working separately from any grant or research institute. Arthur becomes disillusioned with his friends over time, though his thoughts of Benjamina likely play a greater role in this.

For La chimera, Rohrwarcher is joined by cinematographer Hélène Louvart who has functioned as DP for each of her films. Subdued colors make up the visual palette for La chimera with subtle cues taken from Italian films of the 60s and 70s. There’s also a little bit of Wes Anderson in the eccentric tomborali, but Rohrwacher creates more than she borrows.

Where La chimera unfortunately falls short is Josh O’Connor’s acting. Arthur is a challenging role to emote, but on screen Arthur appears as if he were bored more so than morose. His character reminds me of Rex Hofman in The Vanishing, a film that relies on depictions of Rex’s inner turmoil and obsession to build to a horrifying end. O’Connor struggles under the heft of his role in La chimera and with Arthur’s grief central to his character, the impact of the film’s final scene is blunted.

La chimera is at its best when depicting the discovery of new artifacts, though this isn’t without a morally ambiguous consideration of who these artifacts truly belong to – a relevant question to today’s Europe and museum culture. Rohrwacher creates a contemporary auteur feature in La chimera with all the visual and thematic undertones of Italian cinema’s past.