The Hand of God

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The Hand of God

R

Released Dec 3, 2021

2h 10m

Drama

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Popcornmeter

84%

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158 Reviews

76%

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500+ Ratings

From Academy Award-winning writer and director Paolo Sorrentino (Il Divo, The Great Beauty, The Young Pope) comes the story of a boy, Fabietto Schisa, set in the tumultuous Naples of the 1980s. The Hand of God is a story full of unexpected joys, such as the arrival of football legend Diego Maradona, and an equally unexpected tragedy. Fate plays its part, joy and tragedy intertwine, and Fabietto's future is set in motion. Sorrentino returns to his hometown to tell his most personal story, a tale of fate and family, sports and cinema, love and loss.

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Critics Consensus

Although The Hand of God isn't Sorrentino's best work, this beautifully filmed coming-of-age story sings in a beguiling, albeit minor, key.

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Leonard Maltin

leonardmaltin.com

The Hand of Godis filled with the kind of detail that could only have come from observation-and memory. That one family could contain so many unique and peculiar people is a reminder that truth is almost always stranger than fiction.

Jan 6, 2022

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Robert Levin

Newsday

This is a deeply affecting coming-of-age story that doubles as a movie about the movies themselves.

Rated: 3.5/4

Jan 6, 2022

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Mark Feeney

Boston Globe

The film has the vividness of memory, but also the structure of memory, which is to say no real structure at all. Visually, though, the movie is of a piece; it's Sorrentino's eye that holds it together.

Rated: 3/4

Dec 22, 2021

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Geoffrey Macnab

iNews.co.uk

Sorrentino's coming-of-age is his most personal film yet, and a love letter to football, Maradona-era Naples and cinema.

Rated: 4/5

Jan 16, 2025

Full Review

William Stottor

Loud and Clear Reviews

Paolo Sorrentino’s new Netflix feature, The Hand of God, is an expectedly poetic coming-of-age drama set against a sun-kissed Neopolitan backdrop.

Rated: 3.5/5

Jul 18, 2024

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Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

Sorrentino uses the coming-of-age genre to turn his own personal tragedy into a beguiling fable of family and creativity lost and found.

Feb 13, 2024

Full Review

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Audience Member

Very nice, thoughtful film showing us how life events shape us as we grow from adolescence into maturity. It might feel slow to others that aren't attuned to this style of filmmaking. If you spend too much on Tik Tok or watching shorts, the brain rot kicks in. I know, because it happens me. And this was a film I used to break out of my bad habits. The Hand of God is a bittersweet exploration of youth, memory, and destiny, where Paolo Sorrentino weaves a personal coming-of-age tale shaped by family love, sudden loss, and the unpredictable turns of fate. Through Fabietto’s eyes, the film captures the beauty and absurdity of everyday life in Naples, showing how grief can ignite artistic passion and how nostalgia colours the way we understand our past. It is both a tribute to the city’s vibrant spirit and a reflection on how life’s most painful moments can ultimately shape who we become. I'll give this a rewatch and I might change my score.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

05/05/25

Full Review

Niklas L

Whatever it is that this movie is about, I did not get it. Perhaps it is a great movie, but I feel as if there is a lot of understanding of Italian culture necessary to get at this movie. I dearly hope that this is not an accurate depiction of life in Italy (at the time) for it looked terrible.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

05/04/25

Full Review

Joe K

Meandering directionless film, I found most of the character unlikable. Scenes dragged on way too long and I just kept loosing interest. I had to stop watching halfway through and I very rarely do that for any movie.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

09/15/24

Full Review

coronavirus k

evil captilas in the house go hey

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/13/24

Full Review

Kevin M

A coming of age tale of a young man growing up in Naples, Italy in the 1980’s. The partly autobiographical film of the filmmaker’s youth makes effective use of long shots of the young man staring at the events unfolding around him during that time in life when you feel more like a spectator than a participant in your own life. It’s the tale of a people-watcher that becomes a filmmaker. Ultimately, forgettable.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

06/18/24

Full Review

Dina F

I will always come back to this film, its beautiful!! of course Sorrentino made this.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

05/06/24

Full Review

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Paolo Sorrentino

Director

Filippo Scotti

Fabietto Schisa

Toni Servillo

Saverio Schisa

Teresa Saponangelo

Maria Schisa

Marlon Joubert

Marchino Schisa

Luisa Ranieri

Patrizia

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The Hand of God: Trailer 1

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The Hand of God: Teaser Trailer

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Synopsis

From Academy Award-winning writer and director Paolo Sorrentino (Il Divo, The Great Beauty, The Young Pope) comes the story of a boy, Fabietto Schisa, set in the tumultuous Naples of the 1980s. The Hand of God is a story full of unexpected joys, such as the arrival of football legend Diego Maradona, and an equally unexpected tragedy. Fate plays its part, joy and tragedy intertwine, and Fabietto's future is set in motion. Sorrentino returns to his hometown to tell his most personal story, a tale of fate and family, sports and cinema, love and loss.

Director: Paolo Sorrentino
Producer: Lorenzo Mieli, Paolo Sorrentino
Screenwriter: Paolo Sorrentino
Distributor: Netflix
Production Co: Film Commission Regione Campania, Netflix, Regione Campania, The Apartment Pictures
Rating: R (Language|Brief Drug Use|Sexual Content|Some Graphic Nudity)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Italian
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 3, 2021, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 15, 2021
Runtime: 2h 10m

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