'Vincere' follows Mussolini's charismatic impact on World War II through tragic lover

Destined to be nicknamed "Mussolini: The Early Years," Marco Bellocchio's uneven new drama focuses on the rocky, revealing relationship between Benito Mussolini (perfectly cast Filippo Timi) and his obsessed mistress, Ida Dalser (the feverishly intense Giovanna Mezzogiorno).

Beginning with the first steamy sex scene, it's obvious that she's thinking in terms of a long-term relationship, while he's more interested in gathering power and showing off. They tend to repeat this tunnel-vision folly for the rest of the film — and their lives.

She gives birth to a son and tries to get Mussolini to acknowledge the boy and their undocumented marriage. He becomes a World War I soldier, returns as a hopelessly driven man, and tries to shed his politically inconvenient past.

Newsreels of Il Duce at his World War II peak demonstrate the dictator's uncanny talent for crowd control. Somehow, his posturing and exaggerated masculinity did not look ridiculous in the context of the time.

He may look like a jaw-jutting clown today, but why did so many people (including Ida) fall for his flamboyant act? It's the central question in Bellocchio's movie, which both demonstrates his charismatic appeal and suggests why it wouldn't last.

Unfortunately, the well-chosen newsreels and Timi's appropriately operatic performance are not given nearly enough screen time. Mussolini almost disappears as his mistress takes over the narrative, leading to a hapless trip to the asylum and a custody battle she can't win.

Meanwhile, World War II, which almost seems like an afterthought, gets rolling in the background. Timi turns up again, this time playing Mussolini's disturbed son in an extended epilogue.

The most interesting aspect of "Vincere" is Bellocchio's focus on the impact silent films have on the central characters. Ida has an emotional reaction to Charles Chaplin's "The Kid," especially the scenes in which Chaplin is separated from young Jackie Coogan. Mussolini, indulging his martyr fantasies, draws inspiration from a biblical epic depicting Jesus' crucifixion and projected on a church ceiling.

As these episodes prove, Bellocchio's talent for expressive visuals is everywhere in evidence. It's the script that needs more balance.

John Hartl: johnhartl@yahoo.com