Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini
Review by David Carter


Released by Koch Lorber Films
Running Time: 98 minutes
Year of Release: 2005
Rating: NR
Color format: Color
Audio/Subtitles: Italy Dolby Digital Stereo, English Subtitles
Region Code: 1, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 1.85:1
16:9 Enhanced?: Yes
Special Features: "Pasolini and Death: a Purely Intellectual Thriller" - 53 min documentary
Trailer Online: No

It's almost impossible to talk about Italian cinema in the sixties and seventies without spending a good deal of time on Pier Paolo Pasolini. In fact, few directors in history have elicited such widely different reactions from critics and fans. Pasolini's films have the unique distinction of both being awarded praise from the Vatican and causing the director to be arrested for blasphemy. Pasolini never shied away from controversial topics, and even though it is one of his less graphic films, TEOREMA deals with complex issues such as homosexuality and religion. Using less than one thousand words of spoken dialogue throughout the film, TEOREMA is a complex film that uses ambiguous metaphors to allow the viewer to add their own interpretations.

An upper-middle class Italian family receives a mysterious telegram announcing the arrival of someone in a few days. They don't know the stranger who arrives (Terrence Stamp) and he offers little in the way of explanation of who he is or why he is there. The family welcomes him, however, and one by one he seduces all four members of the family. Each one is drawn to him for a different reason, and they all find something different in their relationships with him. One morning, the stranger receives a telegram and announces that he will be leaving soon. Each family member takes him aside and begs him not to leave, but he departs anyway. His departure has different effects on the family; some are helped and some are destroyed, but none are as they were before they met him.

TEOREMA is certainly one of his more enigmatic works, and Pasolini himself remarked that it was not necessary to fully understand the film to take something from it. The most common interpretation of the film, the one Pasolini himself has put forth in interviews, is that the stranger is either God or Satan, and how the viewer classifies him is based on their own personal beliefs. The film gives substantial grounds for either assumption. In actuality, the film gives enough support to both points that either "theory" (teorema is Italian for "theorem") can be argued against. This ambiguity is intentional on Pasolini's part. He has made a film that cannot be adequately discussed in an open forum, as each viewer is in essence watching a different film.

TEOREMA is a very visual film with only rare instances of dialogue, but Pasolini's direction holds the narrative together. The film is difficult, but not inaccessible by any means. It is engaging and draws the viewer in not out of frustration but of a desire to understand it's complexities. Koch Lorber Films has brought TEOREMA to DVD for the first time with a beautiful print that takes full advantage of the majesty of the camerawork. Also included is a documentary on the life and philosophy of Pasolini, a must-see for both the curious and the dedicated fans alike.

TEOREMA is a richly entertaining experience and a definite prize for any fan of Pasolini or European cinema. It's not for everyone, though. While there is beauty in it's complexity, it requires a commitment by the viewer that can be too daunting a task for some. It is a film that you have to want to watch and give your full attention too; otherwise you'll end up bored and confused. If you're up to the task, make sure you check this out.