First of all, whoever posted the plot better correct that "Second World War" thing - as the story is set in 1921, obviously, the events depicted in this one follow the outcome of the First World War.
RAI has been producing dramatizations to be aired on the centennials of certain important events, and this is one such film. We get to learn the story behind the choice of the corpse (or better, human leftovers) over which the Unknown Soldier monument in Rome was built 100 years back.
Unlike other movies of similar centennials (like, those celebrating the 100th birth dates of Italian musicians or movie stars) this one is a combination of century-old footage, animation, and the dramatization to wrap it all up within.
All three of the stars in the production, strangely, have the common element of involvement in the "Il Commissario Montalbano" saga, with the two men (Cesare Bocci and Alessio Vassallo) having played Mimi' Augelio in different phases of his life as Montalbano's vice.
So, practically, no problems with having enough talent in front of the camera.
But I raised my eyebrows while watching it as three particular things bugged me:
1) The animated segments had to have much darker colors. The style could be okay for their limited purpose, but given they were to cause night terrors for the lieutenant, much, much darker tones just had to engulf the wartime action.
2) The name of the film: "Maria's Choice". Now, that sounds too much like "Sophie's Choice", as if trying to borrow some of the overall mood from that well-known Hollywood pic. Yes, both focus on tragedies and on how mothers react to war, especially when the lives (or even decayed bodies) of their sons are at play. However, the kind of "choice" involved here is something much different, something that could either be of secondary importance given the weight of the plot, OR something to invest more particularly on, if the drama was expected to have that aspect as the focus. I just don't like it when European filmmakers bow down to cliché namings and messaging that originates from the other side of the Atlantic as a means of popular cinematic communication.
3) Finally, and connecting to the previous point made: Despite all the effort within the movie to make it clear, I honestly did not get why the CHOICE for the human remains to be buried underneath the monument mattered that much in Italy back in 1921. Yes, the unified soul of the country was at play. Yes, fascists and communists had different ways of looking at how to commemorate the recent past. Still, the need for that "choice" thing looks mysterious to me. The production either failed to communicate how people looked at the issue of tombs and monuments (maybe also from a Catholic perspective?) back then, or maybe I simply missed some crucial explanation along the way.
Those who enjoy to focus on particular details in history may enjoy the production overall, but you can find it overconvoluted in case WW1 and its aftermath is not your cup of tea.
