BESIEGED

Italy, 1998, 94 minutes, Colour.
Thandie Newton, David Thewlis, Claudio Santamaria.
Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci.

Besieged is a small-scale feature film, almost a chamber piece for cinema. It was written and directed by Claire Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci who collaborated on many of Bertolucci’s previous films. Bertolucci had had a strong reputation in Italy since the 1960s with Before the Revolution and The Spider Stratagem, moving few such films as The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris to his Oscar-winning The Last Emperor.

Besieged focuses on two characters, a political refugee from Kenya (Thandie Newton) and a musician living by himself in Rome (David Thewlis). She cleans his apartment. He is attracted by her and uses music to ingratiate himself with her. However, all she wants is his help in freeing her husband from prison in Kenya.

The film shows the development of each character, their growing dependence on each other, emotionally and for the sake of politics and freeing the husband. The pianist becomes absolutely self-sacrificing for the young woman, she becomes more and more indebted to him and feels that she must submit to him – which happens at the very time that her liberated husband arrives at the apartment in Rome.

The film focuses on music, has frequently a sense of claustrophobia when it is confined to the musician’s apartment. It is well acted, and is an interesting focus on characters and the political and emotional dimensions of people facing such dilemmas.

1. The small scale of the film? Confined, a chamber piece? The interaction of the two characters?

2. The role of music, the piano, the range of music, styles? The African singer and the setting of a mood? The cityscapes of Rome? Small, streets, side streets, apartments, markets?

3. The focus on Jason Kinsky, his life in his apartment, his being crippled, confined to the piano? His not wanting to play in public? Shandurai and her place in the apartment block, working for Kinsky, cleaning the house?

4. The African sequences, Shandurai and her desperate cycling, the police, the arrest of her husband, her crying soundlessly? Explanations of her grief, her crusade for her husband? The repercussions on her as a character, emotionally?

5. Her husband, his role in Kenya, his leadership, the reasons for his arrest?

6. The dreams of water, of torture? Shandurai in Rome? The scenes of Rome, the shaft, the effect of the music?

7. Shandurai and her approach to Kinsky, watching Kinsky and his playing?

8. Shandurai’s medical studies, her cleaning the house, studying, watching Kinsky play and the effect of the music, especially as he changed to more African themes?

9. The interplay of the two in the house, under the bed, the shaft, Kinsky and his teaching the pupils?

10. Each exploring the other, the attributes of the other, the possessions? The iron’s steam, the flower in the shaft, the water?

11. Shandurai’s friend Agostino, depending on him, his sexual identity, behaviour? The different reactions to things?

12. Kinsky and Shandurai’s request for help for her husband? His gifts, the ring? His selling the statues, selling the piano? His love for Shandurai? Completely self-sacrificing? His performance to raise money for her? Reducing himself almost to nothing?

13. Her response, her gratitude towards him, the news about her husband? Her emotional dilemma, to submit herself to Kinsky? Her lying on his bed as her husband knocked on the door?

14. Kinsky, the portrait of an eccentric man, loving, self-sacrifice? Of Shandurai, her love, and her willingness to sacrifice herself for her husband? The husband, his freedom – and what future was he entering as he knocked on the door?