My Brillant Friend - On HBO
If you don't mind reading captions, this is an intriguing story about two girls from an Italian village who forge a strong friendship that is often tried by their different opportunities in life. The time is circa, 1944 and both strive to break out from their confining circumstances, using education as the vehicle to help them advance. But one of the friends, Lenu, has the financial support of her family; while the other, Lila, must self-teach in order to keep up. This is actually easy for Lila who can absorb details with ease, and increases her body of knowledge exponentially by reading books taken from the local library. Often, it's Lila who has to help Lenu with her studies.
But, Lila's higher abilities also lead to unfortunate circumstances, as you would expect them to for an assertive woman making her way through a patriarchal society. Often, her vision overlooks the restraining norms that are supposed to keep everyone in check. What becomes evident from the opening of the story, is that this is a problem that has plagued her for her entire life.
The first episode begins with her friend, Lenu, being awaken early in the morning by a call from Lila's son. Lenu is in her sixties and she rolls out of bed grumpy, showing very little concern to learn that Lila is missing. It takes her a while to absorb the facts, but she calls the son back and advises him to check the closet. When he discovers that her things are missing, they determine that Lila packed her things and left home.
Lenu, who has known Lila for most of her life, sees this as a ploy. One that she is familiar with. In a fit of anger she takes a seat at her desk and begins to write, what appears to be a letter to Lila, but is an intention to write the story of their lives. She promises to tell all the facts, which is something she seems certain will punish Lila. The story is then a massive flashback, told in chronological order.
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