In the cinematographic panorama of the last two years, there has been a growing trend of films leveraged by a certain type of introspection that takes the form of a reflection on the choices that are made, the paths that follow and how they influence, indelibly and irreparably, the characters' lives.
Nanni Moretti's moving new film, TRE PIANI (2021), seems to follow this trend (the expression "la nostra strada" is repeated in the film, probably to show that "la nostra strada" is not always the most indicated, that we should all question ourselves, because we all fail), and the characters will have to deal with the consequences of their choices, some of them even marked by a certain levity, ending up in tragic situations.
The story follows, over ten years, the daily lives of four families who live in the same building in Rome, each representing a different stage of life, a fact that is not unrelated to the circumstance of having a teenager, a child and a newborn at the centre of each of these stories, each of them containing within itself all the possibilities of the world.
Moretti's direction is of an impeccable sensitivity, letting the melodrama flow without unnecessary pauses and the passing of time is transmitted naturally, as if all those characters were really growing, aging, transforming before our eyes. Although, at times, we are tempted to judge their attitudes, it becomes clear, as the film progresses towards its conclusion, that there are neither good nor bad here, only human beings who make mistakes, who try to improve, who repent, who learn from their mistakes, and, in a way, achieve redemption, with the exception of the figure of the judge played by Nanni Moretti, whose rigidity of principles is never abandoned, but ends up being extinguished with him.
It is, therefore, on the dichotomy between justice / human relations that this film is based. The law, as a regulator, deterrent and punisher of human behaviour, should, must be, the same for all. However, the law of human relationships is volatile and always depends on a good dose of understanding, tolerance and acceptance, in order to make room for hope and change. The human condition feeds on them.
