Set me free (Italy - 2016), the winning film in the Orizzonti section at Venice 73, is a documentary on possession and exorcism directed by Federica Di Giacomo, who co-wrote the screenplay with Andrea Osvaldo Sanguigni. In Set me free space is given to the figure of the exorcist (in this case the Palermo-born Father Cataldo) who serves as the healer of the mal de vivre of society. In Di Giacomo's film we find physically and psychologically afflicted people who resort to the religious for help, "exorcised" from their inner evil.
Women with relationship problems, those who practice autoeroticism, those with piercings and tattoos, those who really feel the Devil in their bodies and parents worried about their child's school problems present themselves to the exorcist. In all these cases, the religious person intervenes with exorcism and masses of deliverance (with collective possessions vaguely reminiscent of the hysterical convulsive phenomenon of tarantism).
The result of all this, however, is unconvincing as well as very embarrassing. In Set me free in fact, we witness a roundup of true testimonies (or alleged testimonies) of people blaming their problems and hardships on the Devil and seeking divine protection with the help of the Italian exorcist whose one and only medicine in his possession is "exorcism."
Let us also add that Father Cataldo also performs exorcisms by telephone. Phrases such as "Go away Satan" or "I exorcise you" are enough to generate well-being. Some of the cleric's expressions are textbook: "The little devil comes in and out whenever he wants" or "This one is possessed to the highest degree."
Set me free succeeds in making the audience uncomfortable not because of the theme of the evil one and the clumsy way in which it was dealt with but because of that segment of today's society depicted here as weak and easily manipulated. In 2017 one is surely left incredulous at such cases (whether true or false).
A rather boring title also because of its excessive duration (90 minutes).
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The film is available in a curated DVD labeled Mustang Entertainment and is distributed by CG Entertainment. Very neat packaging with interior artwork featuring a long thought from the director about her film.
Audio and video formats reflect the mediocre quality of a documentary filmed with little means.
DVD technical data:
Video format: 16/9 - 1.78:1
Audio: Italian Dolby Digital 5.1, Italian Dolby Digital 2.0
Subtitles: Italian for the deaf
