O Rosto da Inocência (2014)

Both a journalist and a documentary filmmaker chase the story of a murder and its prime suspect.

Director:

Michael Winterbottom

Writers:

Barbie Latza Nadeau (based on the book by), Paul Viragh (screenplay)

Stars:

Ava Acres, Daniel Brühl, Kate Beckinsale

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ava Acres	...	Bea
Daniel Brühl	...	Thomas
Kate Beckinsale	...	Simone Ford
Anjella Mackintosh	...	Documentary Narrator (voice)
Sai Bennett	...	Elizabeth Pryce
Genevieve Gaunt	...	Jessica Fuller
Ranieri Menicori	...	Carlo Elias
Luigi De Mossi	...	Jessica'a Lawyer
Bernarda Valente	...	Jessica's Lawyer
Andrea Tidona	...	Pubblico Ministero Alberto Baldini
Alice Morgan	...	Jessica's Mother
Peter Sullivan	...	Elizabeth's Father
Danielle Mary Wilskow	...	Elizabeth's Mother
Marc Richardson	...	Elizabeth's Brother
Aliya Raphael	...	Elizabeth's Sister

Storyline

THE FACE OF AN ANGEL tells the story of a journalist and a filmmaker as they lose themselves in a notorious murder case they are covering. Based on true events, a riveting account of the controversial case of a American student accused of murder in Italy.

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Plot Keywords:

cell phone | reference to newsweek the magazine | cheating girlfriend | sex scene | cheating wife | 

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Taglines:

Forget the truth, find the story

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

UK Italy Spain USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

17 September 2015 (Portugal)

Also Known As:

O Rosto da Inocência

Filming Locations:

Tuscany, Italy

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$34,194

Company Credits

Production Co:

BBC Films, Cattleya, Hornil Brothers Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Both Daniel Brühl and Cara Delevigne have appeared as villains in superhero films with Brühl appearing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film Captain America: Civil War (2016) as Zemo while Delevigne appears in the DC Extended Universe film Suicide Squad (2016) as June Moone / Enchantress.

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Goofs

Around 35 minutes into the movie, Melanie takes Thomas to party. When Thomas is entering the building he is carrying his brown leather bag containing personal stuff. At the party Melanie and Thomas are smoking weed and eventually are doing other drugs. The movie continues with Thomas leaving the party and going back to the crime scene, where he gets stabbed by Eduardo, which turns out to be dreamed by Thomas. Melanie takes Thomas to the washroom where Thomas has to throw up. After that both of them leave the party for good and Melanie walks Thomas back to the hotel. When both of them are passing a cathedral Thomas does not carry his bag.

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Quotes

Journalist: If you're gonna make a movie, make it a fiction. You cannot tell the truth unless you make it a fiction.

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Connections

References Romeu e Julieta (1968)

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Soundtracks

Un'Alpire Tira
(??)
Performed by 'Fratelli Quintale'

User Reviews

Unstructured and distracted from the true allure of the story

The Face of an Angel: A film about a guy making a film about a book about a headlining controversial murder of a student studying abroad in Italy that points suspicions toward her roommate and the roommate's lover.

In reality, the 'headlining' murder is that of Meredith Kercher, more well known to the public as the trial of Amanda Knox. The Face of An Angel is not a reenactment of the media's coverage of this case, rather a creative interpretation told through the eyes of a journalist Simone and documentary maker named Thomas as he chases the story as it unfolds.

Within the film are several quotes that reveal the true errors in the film's ways, even if its intents were commendable. Firstly, it is more fictional than fact and is not a true crime investigation of the murder, as one character states: "If you're gonna make a movie, make it a fiction. You cannot tell the truth unless you make it a fiction."

This is true of the murder of Meredith Kercher. No one truly knows what went on in that bedroom. So much hearsay has transpired that to claim to tell the truth through a creative interpretation would lead to certain failure.

It is like the director Michael Winterbottom and screenwriter Paul Viragh were aware of the obvious tropes that would certainly damn the film. As one piece of dialogue uttered by the journalist of the film, played by Daniel Brühl, reveals: "It's not about 'whodunnit'…there are so many angles, how to organize it in a meaningful way, it's important that its a story based on truth, but i want to do something that transcends that, that its not just a simple reconstruction…"

In trying to avoid those cliché ideas, The Face of an Angel fails in an unexpected but admirable manner. It is unable to grasp the true essence of the murder that captivated the world in being completely unstructured and focused upon Thomas.

There are aspects of the film that work well and reveal a softer more intriguing side of the investigation. The media's preoccupation with not-Amanda when the true attention should be on the victim, who the tabloid journalists in the film say 'fade into the background.' The focus upon sex and murder due to its innate ability to sell newspapers and compulsive way in which the press perpetuates the images of the key figures in the case. The protagonists frustrations with this simplistic mindset yields a more complete view of the girls as students and people, and does not reduce them to facsimiles.

It is an interesting attempt and the cinematography of the scenes had a certain mood that was effective. But ultimately it fails to showcase a greater message, and the pretentious desire to incorporate Dante Alighieri's source material is off-putting.

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