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*** This review may contain spoilers ***
The Prince of Homburg, an eager young noble in Germany, sees an open grave set in the garden of his palace and figures it is meant for him. This troubled youth has been accused by the man in charge of the principality of having derailed a battle in which the prince has acted irrationally, as far as he is concerned. Now on the eve of an important confrontation in the battle field with the enemy, Sweden, the Elector Prince has his doubts again as to what is he supposed to expect from the young man.The young Natalia, a princess in her own right, comes to the aid of the young man, who evidently loves her. She has been promised to marry someone else, so whatever he feels for her is of no consequence. When the Prince of Homburg goes to the front, he stays with the commanding officers at a side of the arena. His own eagerness compels him to charge ahead, jeopardizing the troops he is supposed to be a part of. Because of his rash decisions, he is sentenced to die, a decision he fights, at first, but later on, he decides to accept his fate. Natalia pleads with the Elector and the prince is given a pardon. Unfortunately, he cannot change the fact that Natalia will be married to someone else. Marco Bellocchio, the distinguished Italian director took liberties with Heinrich Von Kleist's play in his adaptation of the classic. It wasn't the first time the director tried his hand at transforming a play for the movies, "Enrico IV", by Luigi Pirandello came before this. His take on the story is a dark and complex tale that captures the essence of the conflict and the love of the tragic figure of the Prince of Homburg.The cast is interesting. Andrea Di Stefano, whose second film this was, made an inspired Prince of Homburg. He brought equal parts of charm and darkness to the role. Equally good was Barbara Bobulova, who appears as the earnest Natalia, whose love for the prince will make her plead for his life to her own father. Toni Bertorelli portrays the Elector Prince with conviction. Giuseppi Lanci's dark photography contributes to the atmosphere the director wanted to give his film. Marco Bellochio's film is worth a look because it shows us a great director, and a man at the top of his craft.
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