Swept away = Travolti da un insolito destino nell'azzurro mare d'agosto [DVD]

Lina Wertmuller’s castaway drama is a satire on the class war between the wealthy elite and the proletariats. Raffaella (Mariangela Melato) is the very rich, spoilt and opinionated wife of a wealthy Italian capitalist. On a yachting trip around the Mediterranean Islands she constantly berates him for his politics and personal views whilst also delighting in taunting and criticising a deck hand, Gennarino, whose commitment to Communism and unstinting belief in the cause, fuel his antagonism toward her. When Raffaella insists that Gennarino take her out in a dingy for a swim, the pair becomes stranded from the boat, ending up on a deserted island. Once there, the prescribed social roles are subverted when basic needs of food and shelter become tantamount. Raffaella, helpless in her survival skills, becomes enslaved to the edicts of Gennarino who now relishes in his role as master. Nonetheless romance blossoms and Raffaella and Gennarino become accustomed to their new roles - in fact Raeffaella declares to have found happiness amid this basic existence. Whilst the set-up of Wertmuller’s work is intriguing, drawing on the political frictions of Italian society whilst examining the fundamentals of human nature and desire, the brutality of Gennarino’s attitude to Raeffaella (including physical violence) is troubling, especially in light of her devotion. Interestingly it is Raeffaella who is aware that their love stands little chance of survival in the real world, and Gennarino who remains deluded. Full title translates as “Swept away… by an unusual destiny in the blue sea of August”.