A woman born in the sea of Naples in 1950 searches for happiness over the long summers of her youth, falling in love with her home city and its many memorable characters.

Paolo Sorrentino is one of my favourite directors of recent years so I’m always intrigued to see what he has came up with next, and ‘Parthenope’ sounded right up my street. A coming of age story set in Naples from the 1950s up to the present day? Sold! Sadly, ‘Parthenope’ is one of Sorrentino’s weaker efforts with a narrative that I found it hard to connect too, and in many respects it feels like a lazy rehash of his superior earlier movies.

‘Parthenope’ tells the story of Parthenope Di Sangro (Celeste Dalla Porta), a beautiful young woman who is born in 1950 and grows up on the sun kissed beaches of Naples and Capri in the 1970s, where countless men vie for her attention. She enjoys the attention she receives and plays up to it, but despite her being the primary focus of the movie, it’s difficult to get a handle on who she is as a person and what she really wants, and that opaqueness makes it hard to buy into her journey. Sorrentino films are always beautiful to look at and ‘Parthenope’ is no exception, making the most of the stunning Italian coastline and the beauty of its people, but there’s a sense he’s been there and done this type of movie better already with ‘The Great Beauty’.

Sorrentino’s previous movies have generally focused on male leading characters, so it’s a shame that his first with a female protagonist doesn’t come to life as much as intended, despite the strong performance of Celeste Dalla Porta and the undoubted richness and beauty of the Naples setting. A rare misstep for a normally excellent director.

Rating: 2/5

Directed By: Paolo Sorrentino

Starring: Celeste Dalla Porta, Stefania Sandrelli, Gary Oldman, Silvio Orlando, Luisa Ranieri, Peppe Lanzetta and Isabella Ferrari

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt23853982/