Parthenope (film)

Parthenope is a 2024 fantasy drama film written, produced and directed by Paolo Sorrentino. An international co-production between Italy and France, the film stars Celeste Dalla Porta, Stefania Sandrelli, Gary Oldman, Silvio Orlando, Luisa Ranieri, Peppe Lanzetta and Isabella Ferrari.

Parthenope was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 77th Cannes Film Festival, where it premiered on 21 May 2024. It is scheduled to be theatrically released in Italy by PiperFilm on 24 October 2024.

Premise
According to Sorrentino, the film is about a woman named Parthenope "who bears the name of her city but is neither siren nor myth".

Cast

 * Stefania Sandrelli as Parthenope
 * Celeste Dalla Porta as young Parthenope
 * Gary Oldman as John Cheever
 * Silvio Orlando as Devoto Marotta
 * Luisa Ranieri as Greta Cool
 * Peppe Lanzetta as Bishop
 * Isabella Ferrari as Flora Malva
 * Lorenzo Gleijeses
 * Daniele Rienzo
 * Dario Aita
 * Marlon Joubert
 * Alfonso Santagata
 * Biagio Izzo
 * Paola Calliari
 * Nello Mascia
 * Silvia Degrandi

Production
Parthenope was co-produced by Lorenzo Mieli for Fremantle's The Apartment Pictures and Ardavan Safaee for Pathé, in association with Sorrentino's Numero 10, PiperFilm, Anthony Vaccarello's Saint Laurent Productions and Logical Content Ventures.

In August 2023, Gary Oldman was announced as part of the cast.

Principal photography took place in Naples and on the nearby island of Capri. Sorrentino worked with cinematographer Daria D'Antonio, who previously shot The Hand of God.

Release
Parthenope was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where it had its world premiere on 21 May 2024 and earned a nine-and-a-half minute standing ovation at the end of its screening.

The film is scheduled to be theatrically released on 8 January 2025 in France by Pathé, which also handles international sales. Prior to its Cannes premiere, A24 acquired North American distribution rights to the film. In May 2024, the formation of a new Italian distribution and international sales company named PiperFilm was announced, with Netflix as its partner for the post-theatrical window and with agreement reached with Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia for operational theatrical distribution of its films. Parthenope was named to be PiperFilm's first acquisition, scheduled to be released on 24 October 2024.

Critical response
The Guardian's Peter Bradshaw dismissed the film as being "facile" and "conceited", accusing Sorrentino of "pure self-parody" and likening the film to a long-form advertisement for expensive cologne.