It is not surprising that the life of Il Duce is depressing and awful--he was a brutal, evil little man after all. However, after watching it I was kind of wondering WHO the intended audience was. After all, you might have noticed that many of the worst monsters of the 20th century have been so rarely portrayed on film. While there have been a few films that talk about Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Idi Amin and Pot Pot, the lives of such evil men are rarely the sole focus of movies. Probably because the public has no interest in finding out about the real-life stories of these men--we ALL know they are scum! Instead, this has been more the domain of documentaries on the History Channel--and I think that's where these characters should remain. I don't want to see them humanized or explore their motivation (except perhaps in a psychological/sociological sense). And this is the heart of the problem with this movie. Benito Mussolini was scum--he cheated on his wife, was violent to those around him and was an inflated blow-hard. Not exactly something I want to see on the big screen or in a TV movie.
On the plus side, George C. Scott was excellent...as I would have expected from the actor. Otherwise, it's a story that just makes me wonder WHO would want to see this?
On the plus side, George C. Scott was excellent...as I would have expected from the actor. Otherwise, it's a story that just makes me wonder WHO would want to see this?