Frequently classed as the first "blockbuster" of its time because of its large production budget, long runtime and higher-than-average ticket costs at the box office, L'Inferno adopts Dante's prose and brings its pages to life with some decent production values helping it along the way. As far as adaptations go, the movie is fine and features a handful of impressive shots and sequences. The tone is brooding and somewhat haunting, which is appropriate given the source material. The problem though is that it's drawing from a book that (as far as I can fathom) is highly regarded for its lyrical beauty as opposed to its storytelling. Despite the film's best intentions then, you're nevertheless left to watch a bunch of scantily-clad white people faff around for 80 minutes either getting burned to varying degrees or flailing around in some water for whatever reason while another white guy (Dante) has a day-trip through hell in order to feel good about himself by looking down on and deriding the "sinners". For what it is, it's a somewhat interesting watch, but only for historical purposes. Well, that and to make you aware that as long as your sins are lust, gluttony, or fraud, things could be worse.
Review of Dante's Inferno
