The Decameron

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Stephen C Funny pride in 1 hour and 47 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In Italian and American English audio options with American English subtitles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/24/25 Full Review José Antonio Alves V The Decameron: Pasolini's carnal rebellion against bourgeois morality – Pier Paolo Pasolini's 1971 adaptation of Boccaccio's The Decameron functions as both a celebration of unbridled sexuality and a profound psychological excavation of human desire in the face of mortality. Rather than merely translating medieval tales to the screen, Pasolini constructs a visceral manifesto that uses the body as a battlefield against institutional repression. The film's psychological architecture reveals Pasolini's fascination with the primitive, pre-bourgeois psyche. His characters exist in a state of perpetual carnivalesque liberation, where sexual appetite becomes a form of existential resistance. The director's camera lingers on bodies with an almost anthropological curiosity, treating sexuality not as titillation but as a fundamental expression of humanity actively refusing spiritual colonization. What makes The Decameron psychologically compelling is its deliberate crudeness—Pasolini strips away romantic pretence to expose the raw, animalistic core of human motivation. The film operates on Freudian principles, where the id runs rampant while societal superego structures (represented by religious authority) appear impotent and hypocritical. Pasolini's master stroke lies in positioning himself within the narrative as Giotto's student, thereby creating a meta-commentary on artistic creation. This self-insertion reveals the director's psychological investment in the material—he's not merely observing but participating in this rebellion against cultural sterility. The film ultimately serves as Pasolini's psychological manifesto: a passionate argument that authentic human experience exists in the realm of the senses, not in abstract moral constructs. It's both deeply personal and universally provocative—a work that continues to challenge viewers to confront their relationship with pleasure, shame, and the fundamental honesty of physical existence. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 07/10/25 Full Review Teddy B It's a good thing Pasolini chooses to direct films mainly set decades or centuries ago, because that is the only context in which his somehow both artless and artful grubbiness actually makes sense. In Pasolini's films, especially his Trilogy of Life, he creates such a faithful depiction of how peasants from different times lived that it churns my stomach. 'The Decameron', being the first of this trilogy, has the most meat on its bones and the most to enjoy (with 'Arabian Nights' and 'The Canterbury Tales' deriving its humour ineffectively from cruder subjects). Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 04/30/25 Full Review Steve B Came to this film via the recent TV series which I was finding hard going and several reviewers recommending the Pasolini film instead and hailing it a masterpiece. Not sure what they were smoking but I beg to differ! Dreadful acting, incomprehensible story lines and script, wobbly camerawork and direction that made me appreciate the hugely improved production values since the 70s. Stuck it out to the end but wish I hadn’t…. Rated 1/5 Stars •  Rated 1 out of 5 stars 09/13/24 Full Review jordan m It's a lot harder to review this movie when I'm doing it having watched Pasolini's entire Trilogy of Life, mostly because this one was actually quite good. The trilogy as a whole suffers massively from diminishing returns and the feeling that Pasolini's creativity was waning while his desire to exploit non-actors willing to debase themselves with extensive, non-artistic nudity was waxing. Perhaps the Decameron was better source material than the other two books he adapted, but I doubt it made much difference here. I found Pasolini to be similar to Lars von Trier in that there are people who squint so hard at his work that they see art and nuance and metaphor galore, whereas I mostly see them as spoiled manchildren who have never experienced proportionate consequences for their actions, who push the boundaries of decency solely to dare the world to ostracize them for it. I'm getting ahead of myself though. This was a pretty good movie; the trilogy doesn't really get awful until about halfway through the second movie. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a film that reminds you what is special about cinema. Although based on a literary text, it is using the unique language of cinema to make something utterly unique. This film condenses abstract ideas about sex, religion, and art into something ecstatic and full of joy. A masterpiece. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Decameron

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