Tale of Tales (Matteo Garrone, 2015): Italy | France | United Kingdom

Reviewed by Marlee Reed. Viewed at AFI Fest 2015.

Tale of Tales is a movie that makes you rethink the classic fairytales you grew up with. Director Matteo Garrone takes his own spin on classic fairytales, mixing the real with surreal, and taking elements from Giambattista Basile fairytales as well. With an all star cast, made up of the likes of Salma Hayek, Vincent Cassel, John C. Reilly, and Toby Jones, Garrone mixes fantasy and horror with a dash of comedy to showcase his incredible directorial skills.

The film itself is split into three separate tales. In the first story, we are introduced to a king and queen (John C. Reilly and Salma Hayek) that are unable to conceive. With the guidance of a necromancer, they are told that if the queen eats the heart of a sea-serpent, she will be impregnated within 24 hours. In the second, and most interesting segment of the film, another king (Toby Jones) forms a father-like bond to a flea. His relationship with the flea ends up more important than the relationship with his daughter Violet (Bebe Cave), who he unintentionally weds off to an ogre. The final segment tells the story of a prince (Vincent Cassel), a sex-crazed man who is tricked into having intercourse with an old maid. Furious, he banishes her from his castle. In turn, she is transformed into a beautiful woman, and her equally unappealing sister (Shirley Henderson), overcome with envy, wishes to be at the same level of beauty, which does not end well.

The transitions between each story flowed consistently. It was difficult to figure out which story was happening at some points, seeing as the film would jump to different parts from each storyline. The lighting in the film matched up with the mood of the characters and the tone of the scene, dimly lit settings for somber scenes and brightly lit settings for more happier scenes, more gray-ish tones for neutral scenes with less emotion. Cameras quickly cut during conversations, focusing on the character that was speaking at the moment, never showing the expression on the second character until the scene cut back to them while speaking.

With fantastic scenery and spectacular costumes, Garrone did not disappoint with Tale of Tales. The film has us reflecting on the fairytales we grew up with ourselves, wondering if these stories are the inspirations behind them. Make sure the little ones are put to bed before picking this for family movie night.