The Spider's Stratagem

Audience Reviews

View All (22) audience reviews

StephenPaul C The greatest 01 hour: and 40 minutes ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/05/23 Full Review William L In many investigative thrillers, the consequences for asking questions are dire. There are always threats of repercussions, implied or explicit. Perhaps someone must decide between their own future or the well-being of their family, vs. pursuing the just choice. In contrast, The Spider's Stratagem, in its first hint of the level of conflict that it will incorporate, includes a scene where the truth-seeking protagonist (seeking to uncover the truth of the assassination of his patriot father years earlier) is just sort of aggressively guided down a road on his bike. That's because while the film is technically a mystery focused around the unraveling of a conspiracy, the real meat is more philosophical; the nature of crafting a lie for the greater good compared to being genuine and working toward a future based on solid foundations. Bertolucci's particular flair is particularly prominent in creating a twist that goes beyond the relatively straightoforward premise, in the dreamlike atmosphere. The town of Tara has developed an almost fanatical devotion to a hero whose bravery is based on a lie, in a way that is clearly unhealthy; Valli's Draifa (the mistress of the martyred anti-Fascist) has adopted a nearly Miss Havisham-esque persona, living on in fantastical memory of her relationship with a long-gone lover, with the exception that their relationship had actually been consumated. In a slow-paced town of deterioration and decay, a shining memory is as much a prison for the town as it is a self-pleasuring experience. With that in mind, revealing the truth would be not so much about a painful realization, it would be as if someone offered evidence that Christ was not divine while standing in a monastery, draining the lifeblood of those that have built their identities around a fundamental truth. Live a poisoned lie, or suffer devastation? There are some neat scenes that blend time periods without requiring any sort of effects, just clever direction. The muted tone is certainly a bit jarring for the genre, requiring some adjustment in order to enjoy, but with enough time to settle in defies expectations and forms a solid if unorthodox and low-key 'thriller'. (3.5/5) Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 08/14/21 Full Review s r 1001 movies to see before you die. I could've passed on this one. Sure, it was interesting, but pointless. It did create a good atmosphere, but no one I need to see again. It was on Vimeo. Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Hard to find, kind of. Somebody had it on youtube or something but it was grainy, so I don't feel like I got the benefit of this "WUNDERBAR" cinematography the critics go on about. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/16/23 Full Review Audience Member another '70's pic with a weird title Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review eric b Decades later, Athos Magnani (Giulio Brogi) returns to the small town where his same-named father -- an anti-fascist hero -- was assassinated in 1936 while watching an opera. The conspirators were never caught. Brogi also portrays the father in flashbacks. A red neckerchief distinguishes the latter, to avoid confusion. The young Magnani hopes to solve the murder, but the story doesn't go much further than this. The plot doesn't have enough twists and clues to be called a "whodunnit" and, surprisingly, there isn't much of a romance element either. Magnani spends most of his time just walking in contemplation and trading words with his father's ex-mistress (Alida Valli) and three closest friends (they are now elderly but still intimidating). Bernardo Bertolucci directed "The Spider's Stratagem" the same year as his masterpiece "The Conformist," but this film is nowhere near as good. It does have rustic Italian settings and lots of slow, lateral tracking shots. What it doesn't have is a cast with any screen charisma. The script is adapted from a Jorge Luis Borges short story, "Theme of the Traitor and the Hero." Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Spider's Stratagem

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Most Popular at Home Now