The Best Offer
2013 · Directed by Giuseppe Tornatore
Original language: Italian
- drama
- romance
- crime
The story
Virgil Oldman is a world renowned antiques expert and auctioneer. An eccentric genius, he leads a solitary life, going to extreme lengths to keep his distance from the messiness of human relationships. When appointed by the beautiful but emotionally damaged Claire to oversee the valuation and sale of her family’s priceless art collection, Virgil allows himself to form an attachment to her – and soon he is engulfed by a passion which will rock his bland existence to the core.
What it’s like
Dim, chandelier-lit salerooms and velvet-draped villa interiors, with Tornatore's camera lingering on paintings and gilded frames as though they were living things; the palette runs deep ochre, walnut brown and cold blue, with warm pools of lamplight against shadow. The rhythm is unhurried and stately, built on long, composed takes and symmetrical framing, while Ennio Morricone's lush, melancholy strings swell over the quiet. Its mood is elegant unease: a slow, curious romance laced with a creeping sense that something is not quite as it appears. The emotional register is restrained and wistful, and the arc follows a fastidious, lonely expert who gradually lets a fragile woman past his defences, with the thrill of a possible deception humming underneath. Violence is absent; intensity comes from suspense and a few sensual, intimate scenes that are brief and not explicit. It suits a rainy evening alone with a glass of wine, or a cool autumn night when you want something beautiful, adult and faintly haunted. It is for viewers who enjoy art-world atmosphere, slow-burn intrigue and melancholic romance.
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