Plot/storyline have been much discussed in earlier reviews here. And, yes, this is a film about "living with Aids," how it can in some ways "robotize" one's behavior, cut one off and harden one in his/her interactions with others.....and Trabacchi (as Claudio) is excellent in showing us every facet of just such a "throwaway" man (for in the end he does just that). However, I am more interested in another of the players.........the one who shoves in our faces the purity and certainty of simple love: Salerno (as Andrea). He gives such a pure performance that we come face to face with a love so strong that it overpowers any thought of self-danger.......so strong that it overpowers wisdom and any sense of self-preservation.
Practically every other review and comment seems to focus on Trabacchi, yet never in memory have I encountered a male performer who can telegraph the emotion of love more intensely than Salerno; his eyes seem to be that proverbial door to the soul. Again, never have I seen pure love transmitted more powerfully than through this man's eyes and facial expressions (would that many of us ever have been able to have had a love such as his). What he is feeling is projected so strongly that your need is to reach through the screen, grab, and tightly hold him.
I guess I will never be able to understand Italian directors, producers and viewers......for Salerno's film work after this production seems to be nonexistent. How can that be? Yet Trabacchi's follow-on films are numerous, and while his performance is excellent, he displays nowhere near the emotional power radiated by Salerno (should someone admit to a "crush" in here, somewhere?).
So, if you want to see a film about a man none will consider smart, yet a man who would give you unflinching love that you would never doubt, then see "Days." And see the love that Claudio handled disastrously............how would you?
