This film captures the story of 10 children who escaped the Black Death outbreak in search of shelter in the countryside. These kids seem to be trying to forget about the unstable deaths they have seen, while telling each other stories of love in order to do so.
This isn't the Taviani brothers' strongest film to date, but it's one that feels uniquely at peace with the limitations of art and depiction in the face of oblivion.
Here's a leaden affair with some lovely visuals and colorful gowns that seem just picked up from the dry cleaners. What's strange here is that the joy of Boccaccio's sagas still seep through: his high veneration of both love and sex in equal measure.
