Our Lady of the Turks

From the bones of martyrs, the long-dead survivor emerges from the morbid display of the Otranto church ossuary, for... Actually, I don't even know, but one thing is certain – the main character will wander through centuries, events, desires, and peripeties, like in a feverish, bitter, satirical dream, where the laws of time, profane and sacred, do not apply. It is partly an autobiographical-toned film (Bene plays the main character on whom the entire film relies; in fact, Bene was born near Otranto). Bene also often uses very short shots and brisk editing, thanks to which the resulting fast and surprising montage evokes in the viewer sudden and unexpected emotions, just as the poetic-philosophical passages evoke awe and confusion in the viewer's intellect. The film received the Grand Jury Prize (alongside Robert Lapoujade's film Le Socrate) at the Venice Film Festival in 1968. (03/04/2016)