Fiume o Morte!

Comedy is the best answer to oppression, someone has said. It is this the mantra that Igor Bezinovic embraces with his feature film Fiume o Morte!

The 1919 occupation of Rijeka - or Fiume, as called in Italy - by Gabriele D'Annunzio is still today amply debated in the italian intellectual context. D'Annunzio himself is a character that, apparently, escapes all interpretations, ranging from being a poet laureate, a visionary, a dandy. Too rarely, it is pointed out that he was, or at least became later in his life, one of the minds behind the core of the fascist ideology. Bezinovic's film, first and foremost, makes this very clear statement, and proceeds to describe the foolishness of D'Annunzio's "venture", outlining how deeply intertwined with fascism it is - which is something italian historiography tends to reduce.

In a vein that might remind some of Radu Jude's I Do Not Care If We Go Down in History as Barbarians, Fiume o Morte! constructs a docu-fictional framework by reenacting the historical episode in modern day Rijeka. D'Annunzio and the other characters are enacted by local non-professionals (many of which croatian native speakers), with Rijekan italians delivering a voice-over in the "fiumano" dialect. Reconstruction of documented events or photos further contribute to legitimize the mise-en-scène. The result is entirely hilarious: a smart satyre that allows a perspective detached from the usual sacrality that the italian cultural tradition attributes to a historical figure that perhaps should be revisited further. D'Annunzio is not a singular target for the film, which also demystifies a whole number of important italian intellectuals which have been always given a status of consideration that overshadowed their political adherence to fascism.

Fiume o Morte! is not only a film that examines the roots of the fascist ideology, it is also a film about the city: Rijeka presents itself through its buildings and locations, it does not remain a backdrop but an active player. The choice of maintaining all signs of the contemporary city are what make this film more than a docu-fiction in the traditional sense, it is a film that poses question on the meaning of places, of their significance and their change throughout history.

Fiume o Morte! is a necessary film, that needs to be watched for its political importance, and that points out how history is a form of knowledge that should always study itself. It is in the process also a genial form of comedy.

RATING: 5/5

Original title: Fiume o Morte!

Directed by: Igor Bezinovic

Country: Croatia

Year: 2025

Length: 112 min.

Premiere: Rotterdam Film Festival 2025

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