Once again, the filmmaking and storytelling are quite wonderful. At times things drag just a bit, but the poetry should be savored. Here we have the other two books of The Divine Comedy: The Purgatorio and The Paradiso. Dante's obsessions with Beatrice are brought to bear as he includes her in the remainder of this epic poem. What was interesting to me is that both of these come from Dante's head. There is no foundation, literary or otherwise, to suggest these are possible places after we die. Especially, Purgatory. Of course, purgatory is the in-between place where souls are stuck for a while, hoping to achieve paradise. Once again we have people that the church deems as unable to get to the top, toiling and walking in circles. Of course, I was told by my Roman Catholic friends that if one were to pay indulgence, one could hurry up the process. I'm sure the church kept a cash box to be used at future times to pay someone off. I'm sorry for the cynicism. I really enjoyed this documentary. Even though I am not profoundly religious and have no connection to the Catholic Church, religion has had such a profound influence on the world. Of course, there is only one true religion, right? I found a number of things intriguing. First of all, the idea of paradise being something non-corporeal, in the head, so to speak. So when Dante says goodbye to Beatrice, her spirit sends back a sort of ray. I understand that because Dante has no idea what heaven would be anymore than you or I. I also enjoyed the story of the missing Cantos where Paradiso was published incomplete. Thanks to Boccaccio they were finally found and the huge poem was completed. Dante had succumbed to Malaria. The main thing I found interesting was the portrayal of a man with great literary talent and a slightly unbalanced mind. He was expelled from Florence and never fully recovered, though today he is revered. One should always study the milieu of these historical figures and not judge them too harshly. Astronomy did show that the earth is not the center of the universe, but the scientists of the time felt that was the case. If you are lukewarm to the ideas portrayed here, this is still a wonderful inroad into an understanding of the time.
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