By Romey Norton - December 6, 2024
Directed by Edoardo De Angelis, The Commander tells the true story of an Italian naval commander Salvatore Todaro rescuing a crew of Belgians at great risk to himself and his men. Pierfrancesco Favino stars as Todaro in this drama which tells the story of humanity rather than the harshness of war. The film is in Italian, so unless you speak the language of love, subtitles will be needed.
Ships are under fire at sea, in October 1940, and Todaro sinks the opposing ship. This is the turning point where he decides to rescue the 26 Belgian survivors, instead of letting them drown. Once safe, he must disembark them at the nearest safe harbour, as required by the law of the sea.
The film is shot beautifully with soft lighting mixed with dark colours. The cinematography creates uneasy and unnerving atmospheres, especially with a lot of the film set in the claustrophobic spaces of a submarine. You can feel their dread, fear and even how cold they are through the cinematography. The script is expressive and at times poetic - far deeper and more emotional than expected.
Pierfrancesco Favino steps into the shoes of Salvatore Todaro with strength, portraying him with power and grace. There is a vulnerability to his character, a kindness that comes through so you understand the choices he makes. All the acting throughout the film is compelling, with some very poignant moments.
At two hours the pace of the film is steady, with some slow sections that are there to build the story, but did leave me wanting more action. However, that’s not the intention of the film; the film wants to explore the humans behind the sailors, rather than the physical battles they went through. We see how crew members on ships were treated and what they would have experienced.
That doesn’t mean the film is without action, there are some battle sequences and scenes in the water which will make your heart race and put a lump in your throat. The section where the Belgians need to be rescued is intense and terrifying to think this happened in real life.
Once aboard that’s where the true grit and drama commences, as some Belgians are less grateful than others. The commander now must control more men, in a small space and maintain peace.
The ending of the film ties the story together, with a hopeful message and relays what impact an act of kindness can have. With some stunning but sombre shots of the harsh sea, the film ends with some statistics. Commander Tadaro died two years later, by a burst of machine gun fire by a British Spitfire near Tunisia and out of the 119 Italian submarines, only 19 survived the war. An effective and poignant end.
The Commander is a powerful, historical drama that gives a fresh perspective on WWII and the war genre in general. I believe it captures the Italian spirit and has told the true story with honesty - doing it justice. This is a must-watch for all war film fans.
The Commander is out now in cinemas
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