'Vincere': A Film Explores Mussolini's Family Drama
This acclaimed movie shows how the Italian dictator drove his first wife and his son into mental institutions
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Vincere is a docudrama portraying the events surrounding Benito Mussolini (Filippo Timi) in his youth, beginning in 1907 when he was a member of the Socialist Party.
Mussolini was a revolutionary when he met Ida Dalser (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), who saved him from the police. They had a hot-and-heavy affair and married. He supported the war against Germany and broke with the Socialist Party, which opposed going to war in 1914. For unexplained reasons, Mussolini left Ida and wed Rachele (Michela Cescon). Ida spent the rest of her life trying to get him to recognize her as his wife and their son as his heir. Mussolini's response to her drives her into a mental institution.
Although Timi looks nothing like Mussolini, he makes him come alive on the screen. Timi also portrays Mussolini's son, Benito Albino, as an adult who also ends up in a mental institution.
This film received rave reviews from most critics. It is good and worth seeing but not great.