Review of Quiet Chaos (2008) by Peter E — 10 Jan 2010

Based on a best-selling novel (Sandro Veronesi's Caos Calmo), Quiet Chaos stars Nanni Moretti as successful businessman Pietro Paladini. One day, Pietro saves the life of a beautiful drowning woman (Isabella Ferrari as Eleonora) at the beach only to discover, when he returns home, that his wife has suddenly died and their 10-year-old daughter Claudia (Blu Yoshimi) is distraught.

On Claudia's first day back at school after the funeral, Pietro impulsively decides not to leave but simply to sit in the park opposite the school and wait for her. He then repeats this process every day and gradually, his work colleagues (Charles Berling and Hippolyte Girardot) and various family members (Valeria Golino as his sister-in-law; Alessandro Gassman as his brother) all come to visit him, as does Eleonora, who's seeking to make amends for not having thanked him after he saved her life.