I Am Love review

An Italian melodrama that fails to get beyond surface beauty

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

A lavish Italian melodrama with echoes of The Godfather and The Leopard, I Am Love is sweeping, operatic and more than a little silly.

The latter is no fault of Tilda Swinton as the glacial trophy wife of a rich Milanese businessman whose structured life starts to crumble when she falls for her son’s chef friend.

It’s more down to overblown plotting, intrusive scoring and Luca Guadagnino’s stately direction.

The art direction here is undoubtedly flawless but it’s tough not to titter when shots of bees pollinating plants provide a ham-fisted metaphor for Tilda and her beau (Edoardo Gabbriellini) engaging in some alfresco rutting.

More info

Available platformsMovie
Less
Freelance Writer

Neil Smith is a freelance film critic who has written for several publications, including Total Film. His bylines can be found at the BBC, Film 4 Independent, Uncut Magazine, SFX Magazine, Heat Magazine, Popcorn, and more.