Director Giuseppe Tornatore sets up astonishingly beautiful shots to tell a gruesome tale of sexual slavery, torture (both bodily and psychological), and human endurance. It's a striking contrast, but at some point I wanted to plead to Mr. Tornatore, "Please, signore, you don't need to hit me so hard, nor so often!" Similarly, when I ran out of fingers and toes to count the plot twists, I mentally composed a short, teacherly letter to Tornatore explaining the difference between teasing and bullying.
Happily Ksenia Rappoport's unforgettable portrayal of Irena--a Ukrainian woman trafficked into Italy and forced into a decade of prostitution and coerced surrogacy--provides the substance and the succor needed to remain invested in the film.
By the final scene, however sappy it may have been, I felt rewarded for having endured this stomach-twisting roller coaster for two hours.
