This extraordinary Italian psychodrama/crime thriller, with its heavy S/M undercurrent and stylish scenes of sexual torture, is almost a Spaghetti Pink Film. It is not what I expected from the director of "Cinema Paradiso", but, Sweet Jesus!, I was mightily impressed. What we know from the outset about the "Unknown Woman" of the title, played with immense courage by Kseniya Rappoport, is that she's had a life of physical abuse, brutal rape, and shocking exploitation. She's presently engaged in a scheme to hide from her jailers while searching for a a considerable stash of money. After committing a shocking crime, she gains the confidence of a woman whose young daughter she feels connected to. It isn't long before our heroine is schooling the young girl in the art of survival by slamming her head repeatedly to a hardwood floor. It is scenes like the woman's "abuse" of the girl, amongst others, that make "The Unknown Woman" a harrowing experience. I will spare you the film's most exciting and earth-shattering revelations, but rest assured you're in for a a hellish journey. The film's musical score, courtesy of Ennio Morricone, is a masterpiece, and hearkens back to some of the maestro's best giallo scores. The film is heavy on nudity and bloodshed, though, because it is built on such a strong, character-based screenplay, it never becomes an exploitation film. From performances to production design, this is top notch film-making with a bleak, sharp center. I enjoyed every razer-edged minute of it.
Review of The Unknown Woman
