Gloria Mundi

The film opens on a joyful birth, a giving birth to a new human being. But what world, exactly? Of course, this is happening in Marseille, in the heat at noon, however there is something icy in the characters’ lives struggling with one of the worst monsters humanity has ever given birth to: voracious capitalism (pleonasm?). All of them belong to a social class with low perspectives, always struggling, and they cross in the streets other “nobodies” in the same situation, who struggle even more. Nevertheless, this fragile humanity does not lose its dignity, even when tumbling. It then brings out its secret weapon: solidarity. The brotherhood is far from dead! Robert Guédiguian is a filmmaker who, with the same ingredients, always manages to surprise us with new recipes. His oeuvre is a magnificent fresco, a chronicle of our times. As the years go by, we enjoy meeting with his faithful troupe of actors, watching it evolve and grow with new people. It is touching to see how time modeled the actors’ bodies, the facial expressions, the bonhomie and wrinkles assumed. It is part of the intimacy, that sails in his films towards shores of universality, while another part of us sinks in the Mediterranean Sea for having hoped too much for a heaven of peace. Ariane Ascaride, granddaughter of Italian immigrants, is more than ever touching and true, in her interpretation and in her speech when the Mostra’s jury hand over the prize for best acting, so deserved!