After the overseas adventure…Come to think about it…

I thoroughly enjoyed Tale of Tales on my Italian adventure. When I came back down to earth for a think, stamping ones individuality is a theme in Italian fantasy Tale of Tales (2015, Italy).

One certain Queen’s stamp of individuality is her ability to have a baby, but she cannot. To have a child defines her, though.

The Queen’s sensitives to not becoming pregnant are heightened when she sees a royal performance.

She seems disturbed by seeing a pregnant woman in the performance, not for the sake of the performance, but it seems the sight of a pregnant woman triggers emotions in her because she cannot have a baby.

But in Tale of Tales, there is the question of how far is too far in the pursuit of getting what one wants.

Let me explain. You see, does her ‘stamp of individuality’ go too far if she imposes on a child she may bring into the world?

Will she be possessive of her child or let her child have the ability to decide things on his or her own?

Will the Queen manage her desires adequately or will they spill out of control?

The questions seem to be basic ones: what is the purpose of bringing a child into the world? Why would the urge for child rearing become obsessive and smothering of a child?

What this theme, of individuality, comes down to.

Despite those parental questions, it comes back to the idea of when someone’s individuality imposes on another person’s.

Like the Queen’s stamp of individuality, doesn’t another human being also have individuality?

Then, why would others impose their will on others?

This theme is also present in Tale of Tale‘s other story of what extremes a father would go to give his daughter a husband.

It certainly is a meaty question when it gets close to someone’s sense of being human. On the surface, Tale of Tales is a film of mystery, but going further, it’s not skin deep.

The film itself is a one of a kind.

Warnings—sex scenes and nudity; violence and horror; Rated R

Notes: Starring: Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, Toby Jones, Loosely based on the Giambattista Basile stories, Directed by Matteo Garrone (Feature films directed by Matteo Garrone: Land in Between, 1996; Guests, 1998; Roman Summer, 2000; The Embalmer, 2002; First Love, 2004; Gomorrah, 2008; Reality, 2012)