Watching: Patria

Overview

The Turin factory, another in a series of closures, shuts down, leaving workers jobless and uncertain. Salvatore, a worker, climbs the tower in protest or rage, threatening to jump. Giorgio, a shop steward with opposing political beliefs, saves him. The third worker, a visually impaired and autistic keeper, joins them, climbing the tower to keep them company. Abandoned by everyone, they wait for journalists to arrive. These diverse perspectives reflect the past thirty years of life in the country, marked by wasted opportunities, betrayed hopes, crimes, massacres, and political power struggles. We watch through archive footage, contrasting this wicked dance of events with the simple common sense of three people with no power, hanging on a tower, building a friendship without realising it.