Not a perfect film, but certainly a great one, which is definitely worth seeing. Out of all directors, Pasolini can certainly be described as one of the most compassionate and "spiritual" if I can use this term for an atheist. No other director has shown such brotherly love and understanding towards those on the very lowest rung of society as he has: Those society skives like the prostitutes, pimps, and thieves. The film's character is neither a saint nor complete sinner. He may exploit women for his well-being due to the economic system we live in that both encourages and sometimes forces us to be parasitic upon others. However at the same time he also capable of great self-sacrifice and love as shown by his desire to takes care of a homeless woman with 4 small children. The film is a metaphor about our current class-based capitalist world. The system is an infernal machine. We on this earth live in a Hell created by our social system. Pasolini was a dedicated socialist. The film begins with a quote from Dante's Purgatorio, implying that the best we, the lower class, as symbolized by the main character Accatone, can hope for is to die and go to Purgatory to atone for our sins.
Review of Accattone
