In the Hand of Dante

In the Hand of Dante, Julian Schnabel’s poetic, darkly ironic and seemingly quixotic film gives a nod to Dante Alighieri and author Nick Tosches (1949-2019). The film made its New York City premiere at Tribeca Festival in the Spotlight Narrative category. According to Schnabel in the Q and A after the film screening, Tosches, a fan of the 14th-century genius, knew a lot about Dante and his work. A self-proclaimed expert, Nick Tosches fictionalizes himself as the protagonist of his novel which Schnabel adapted with co-writer Louise Kugelberg. Like Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy, or Nick Tosches titular work, Schnabel’s unique and mesmerizing film does not give itself over to facile understanding.

As in his previous cinematic outings (At Eternity’s Gate, Basquiat), Schnabel teases out phenomenal performances from his lead actors. In this instance the magnificent Oscar Isaac in the dual role of Dante and fictionalzed writer Nick Tosches centers an extraordinary cast. They give authentic, performances sometimes in type, other times, frightening and surprising. Gal Gadot, John Malkovich, Gerard Butler, Louis Cancelmi and Sabrina Impacciatore round out the main cast. Martin Scorsese shows up bearded and wigged but unmistakable as Isaiah, who mentors Dante.

Al Pacino’s Uncle Carmine spells out a key theme

Adding the pièce de résistance and with only a few lines, Al Pacino as Uncle Carmine at the film’s beginning counsels the Young Nick (Ibrahim Elouahabi). After an event that Nick confesses to him, Pacino’s Carmine explains how to distinguish spiritual holiness (life affirming) from religious hypocrisy (the way of death).

Pacino’s performance anchors the film’s themes about good and evil, sincerity and untrustworthiness. Uncle Carmine provides a life lesson that adult Nick carries with him to measure whether his own actions are good or evil. Learning this proper discernment from his youth, Nick is able to confront the devils of hell he meets during the film with inner resolve and hope. As he moves through their perfidy, he follows a path up toward the light, affirming self-love, so he can recognize love when it happens. By the conclusion Nick escapes the metaphoric inferno that Gerard Butler’s Louie and the others despise as much as they despise themselves and their unredeemed lives.

In the Hand of Dante defies easy description

The thought-provoking film defies easy description. Interestingly, to clarify Schnabel uses a symbolic color scheme to differentiate present action in the 21s century from the 14th century (1300s) when Dante lived and wrote. He uses black and white film for the gritty, dark, criminal, underbelly which manifests evil, the infernos of human nature. Such infernos blaze globally from New York City to Venice, to Palermo and other cities in Italy. Specifically, the black and white scenes manifest wickedness that Nick must negotiate to get out alive, using his life-long learning and Dante’s glorious work.

Beautiful vibrant colors of the sky, ocean, rock formations and settings of Italy represent the 14th century Renaissance when Dante lived in Florence. The sets interior and exterior, period-looking costumes, hairstyles, etc., exquisitely capture his time. After the government exiles Dante, he receives counsel, and gets help and inspiration to write his masterwork, The Divine Comedy. The sage Isaiah (Martin Scorsese) directs, inspires and guides Dante. And his friend (Louis Cancelmi also portrays Lefty) provides the money to sustain Dante to write after his exile. These color scenes with Dante thematically represent light, hope, goodness and the exaltation of artistic creation to redeem human nature.

Louise Kugelberg co-wrote the film with director Schnabel

Using Tosches titular novel as a springboard, Schnabel and co-writer Louise Kugelberg interlace concepts about life, art and the melding of the two in Schnabel’s historical thriller-romance. Clearly, Schnabel delights in the profound philosophical and esoteric, represented by the characters Dante and his mentor Isaiah. Yet, he contrasts their heavenly notions with the most bleak, vile and deplorable behaviors of criminally monstrous characters like the brutal Louie (a fantastic Gerard Butler) and treacherously smiling Joe Black (Malkovich).

Nick lives Dante’s poem when he entangles himself with Black, a mobster who buys and sells valuable art works on the black market. As a sardonic example of his nature, Joe Black owns the Rembrandt self-portrait because of its value. But he hates it. Black tasks Dante expert Nick to accompany Louie on his adventure to steal Dante’s original manuscript reputed to be with a Palermo mob boss. The criminal network in Palermo planned to make a fortune if indeed, Dante wrote the handwritten manuscript. Nick will authenticate it. Allured and not completely aware of the infernos (greed, lust, murderous double-crossing intent, etc.) roiling inside these criminals, Nick accepts the job.

The soul journey across time

Elegantly alternating between Nick’s modern-day New York and Dante’s renaissance world in parallel, In the Hand of Dante reveals Nick/Dante’s soul journey across time. From the torments to the heavens, from brutality to gentility, the appreciation and mystical understanding of oneself comes through love’s guidance. Nick’s authenticating the manuscript leads to revelations about the meaning of love, truth and morality. He establishes a relationship with Julietta (Gal Gadot) his assistant.

In parallel, Dante who ignored his wife Gemma (Gadot) takes her into consideration after their exile. As Dante did writing his masterpiece by risking all to then return to Gemma, Nick risks his life to arrange a new life with Julietta. Separated by 700 years, both men take the journey realizing the intimacy of The Divine Comedy as a reflection of their own lives. Dante made this revelation when he created The Divine Comedy, Schnabel suggests, centuries ago. In pursing the poem’s authentication and chaos that follows, Nick emerges from a hellscape with mob monsters to receive a similar revelation.

To check the Tribeca Fesival’s synopsis of The Hand of Dante see the website. https://tribecafilm.com/films/in-the-hand-of-dante-2026. The Hand of Dante streams on Netflix at the end of the month.