Venice Film Festival 2015: A Bigger Splash, review – Most consistently enjoyable film at the festival so far

This re-make of Jacques Deray’s 1969 erotic thriller, La Piscine has been intriguingly re-imagined, says David Sexton 
David Sexton12 October 2015

A Bigger Splash, a title alluding to the Hockney picture and film, is a re-make, directed by Luca Guadagnino (I Am Love), of Jacques Deray’s 1969 erotic thriller, La Piscine, with Alain Delon and Romy Schneider. It’s been intriguingly re-imagined and re-located from the Cote d’Azur to the volcanic island of Pantelleria.

Bowie-like rock star Marianne (wonderfully spooky, pale and angular Tilda Swinton) is hiding away in a villa with her passionate lover (Matthias Schoenaerts), living nude and having lots of sex, while mutely recovering from a throat operation when, unannounced, her ex, maverick record producer Harry (Ralph Fiennes, an extrovert pain, full frontal too) invites himself, and his newly discovered, supposedly 22-year-old daughter Pen (Dakota Johnson) to stay.

A round of jealousy, lust and ultimately murderous violence in the swimming pool ensues, expressively filmed by Guadagnino. As a re-make, it’s not so original maybe, just the most consistently enjoyable film at Venice so far.

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