La Chimera Jun 2026

Rohrwacher’s storytelling is elevated by her brilliant experimentation with visual formats. Working alongside cinematographer , she shoots La Chimera using three distinct film stocks:

Rohrwacher shoots La Chimera on a glorious mix of 16mm film and grainy video, switching aspect ratios and film stocks with a magician’s sleight of hand. The above-ground world—the sun-bleached hills, the train stations, the chaotic marketplaces—is rendered in warm, slightly faded Kodak tones. It feels real, but also like a memory fading at the edges.

At the beginning of the film, Arthur is released from prison. Disheveled and heartbroken, he returns to a small town in Tuscany. He is grieving the loss of his great love, , an Italian woman who has recently died under mysterious circumstances. Arthur moves into the dilapidated home of Beniamina’s mother, Flora (Isabella Rossellini), a faded aristocrat living in poverty. La Chimera

La Chimera is a profound, evocative film that challenges the viewer to reconsider our relationship with the past. By weaving together elements of myth, romance, and social critique, Alice Rohrwacher has created a work that is simultaneously a critique of modern greed and a heartfelt, poetic tribute to the enduring power of memory and love. It is a "stubborn impossibility that 'La Chimera' dramatizes with playful, peculiar grace".

While living there, Arthur meets Italia (Carol Duarte), a warm and somewhat daffy young woman who aspires to sing, and a tentative relationship blossoms. The narrative follows Arthur and his gang on a series of chaotic, often comical, tomb-raiding expeditions, which are sometimes filmed in sped-up silent-film style, adding to the film's folkloric feel. As Arthur continues to plunder Etruscan graves, the line between his reality, his dreams of Beniamina, and the voice of the dead becomes increasingly blurred, leading to a poetic and enigmatic climax about the nature of loss and the weight of history. It feels real, but also like a memory fading at the edges

Isabella Rossellini plays Flora, a former opera singer and the mother of the lost Beniamina. Her home is a chaotic ruin filled with peacocks and piano keys. She represents the crumbling aristocracy, but also the memory of the woman Arthur cannot find. Their relationship is tender and traumatic—a mother grieving a daughter, a lover refusing to finish mourning.

La Chimera (2023), directed by Alice Rohrwacher, is a moody, lyrical drama that blends archaeology, romance, and existential yearning into a quietly mesmerizing portrait of dislocation and reconstruction. Set in the Italian countryside near Rome, the film follows a young Englishman named Arthur (played by Josh O’Connor) who drifts through a life of aimless labor and furtive treasure-hunting, gradually surrendering to the fragile possibility of connection and meaning. He is grieving the loss of his great

Unearthing the Intangible: The Haunting Beauty of Alice Rohrwacher’s La Chimera

Rohrwacher weaves a rich tapestry of mythological influences, referencing figures like Orpheus and Ariadne to explore how we bear the weight of the past while living in the present. Artistic Vision and Style

Alice Rohrwacher shoots the film on 16mm film, giving it a grainy, dreamlike, and nostalgic texture. The style feels like a mix of neorealism and a fairy tale. The camera lingers on faces, dirt, and the stark contrast between the darkness of the tombs and the blinding sunlight of the Tuscan countryside.

: Unlike his companions, who seek material wealth, Arthur is driven by a desire to find his lost love, Beniamina, whom he believes is waiting for him in the afterlife. The Guardian 2. Etymology and Symbolism The title "La Chimera" carries multiple layers of meaning: The Hidden Treasures of La Chimera - Video Essay