La Grazia (12A)

2025 italy

Dir. Paolo Sorrentino

As Head of State, Italy’s president wields significant constitutional power yet it is rare for those outside of Italy to even know their name. Above party politicking, their role is to step in when parliament is in crisis, to pass or delay signing into law, to slow things down and avoid rash decisions.

In this, Sorrentino’s latest film, the fictional President Mariano, a widower still grieving for his wife, is in the last days of his term. He has three important decisions to consider but he is struggling, lonely and haunted by the suspicion that his late wife had been unfaithful to him 40 years before.

With some fantastic set-piece moments, La Grazia is a stylish, elegant and thought-provoking film that reveals the vulnerability within and the absurdity of official pomp and ceremony.

Venice film festival winner, September 2025

Tickets for this film are £6 (£1 child/student) available on the door or in advance from the Buxton Opera House box-office