The Grim Reaper

Bernardo Bertolucci’s first feature film, which he directed in 1962 when he was just 20 years old, is based upon a short story by Paolo Pasolini—an Italian version of Kurosawa’s Rashomon. When Pasolini dropped the project to focus on Mamma Roma, Bertolucci, his protégé at the time, took over. At the center of the story is a police investigation: When a young girl’s body is discovered on the banks of the Tiber river, the suspects’ accounts of the events are presented in flashback scenes and lead to the discovery of the murderer. Bertolucci ponders upon the nature of the narrative’s truth and reliability while successfully combining elements of suspense with a poetic atmosphere. The film heralds the birth of a cinematic genius.