Blind Light

The attraction of the Italian peninsula Capri is apparently so strong that people staying there for one day are immediately overcome by the need to stay there for the rest of their lives. At least, that is what happened to the Swedish writer and architect Axel Munthe (1857-1949), whose book ‘The Story of San Michele‘ was an important source of inspiration for filmmaker Pola Rapaport. In particular Munthe‘s description of the influence of the blinding Mediterranean light on his frame of mind made Rapaport feel a strong urge to travel to the island herself.Her personal voyage of discovery led to a film in which the lives of three different characters are interwoven. First, the historical figure of Munthe, whose villa ‘San Michele‘ is one of the busiest tourist sites on the popular island. Then, the director herself, who acts as the narrator and, illustrated by photographs, gives an account of the trip to Italy she once made with her mother. Finally, the purely fictional character of a successful fashion photographer, who has reached an emotional and professional deadlock and wants to come to her senses on Capri.Rapaport has paid a great deal of attention to the visual style and to the music score, incorporating Schubert‘s classical tones next to Richard Hell‘s punk rock and Laurie Anderson‘s postmodern songs. All this has made BLIND LIGHT a poetic odyssey, in which a filmmaker tries to find the secret of the transcendental experiences she once had on Capri.