(Sunny) moves and countermoves
Jan. 11th, 2025 09:01 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shallownessHotel Portofino - 2.5 Subterfuges
The previously was more or less a replay of the last scene and then it proceeded smoothly on into Rose having to react as Lucian returned to their room, while she was still processing the incriminating picture. So she hid. And then she got very passive aggressive. Not that it would be in her nature to get aggressive, but I suppose if she had, she’d have had to face the fact that she had rejected Lucian sexually – and, as Bella was thinking, she’d have to ask herself what she wanted. Instead, she was Julia’s daughter.
I think it may, for once, be accurate to the period that people kept infantilising Rose (old enough to marry) and Constance (a mother!) But it was irritating to watch Bella seek Julia’s permission to have the sex talk with Rose. It was enlightening as to Julia’s philosophy about sex and how unhelpful that had been to Rose. Also unhelpful that Bella was busy with all the rest of the plot and never got round to it, because she could see that Rose was miserable.
And I know they’re trying to be protective of Constance and her chance of a new life, but Betty and that relative really ought to tell her that her mother had had a stroke, and she really ought to be the one to decide if her son is going to be adopted. But not for a second did they seem to carry out the simple thought experiment of how Constance would react if she found out what they were with-holding or planning to do.
There were couple of contrasting montages involving Rose. In one she was sad and neurotic about sex, while Alice was getting it on with fiancée Victor. In the other, both Rose and Constance were looking at themselves in a mirror (did find this a bit sad and male gazey, because it seemed to be about them thinking about what Lucian saw in them, and a part of me wonders if golden boy is worth all that.)
Rose decided to Go For It, stripping off her robe to reveal some sexy twenties lingerie and play the role of aggressive seductress (as described by Julia.) Despite having snogged Constance so desperately earlier in the day, Lucian did respond, until Rose went even more aggressive and Lucian remembered he was Bella’s son and pointed out This Wasn’t Rose. But I think what she’ll maybe take out of what happened is him recoiling.
Maybe take her to a psychoanalyst, somebody, because Julia has a lot to answer for.
Mark Umbers seems to be having a blast embodying Cecil, who was conspiring like mad, threatening the Hot Italian Architect, stalking his wife (as she went to a Genoan assignment with someone she’d been having an emotional affair with), whining that he wasn’t getting fed, and being used by Bella and Danioni in different ways. And because he had done so much of it with a sense of entitlement, he deserved the last two bits.
Bella sent a message to Gian-Luca via his father, dragging the Count along with her (at least he got to do so knowingly eventually) and ignoring Danioni, because Nish! (Although it was mainly for Lucian.) She would then be informed by Danioni that the planning for the solarium had hit a snag – her majority shares (also Mussolini’s nativism) as a woman. She was untrusting enough of Cecil to follow him and find out he was in cahoots with Danioni, and eventually about the whiskey deal (if not the fact that he wanted the hotel for a money-laundering operation.)
Clearly, she was up to something with the Italian lawyer, Albinesi and Claudine, and by this point I hope they were sneakingly getting Cecil to sign divorce papers. After all the fuss, Henry was absolutely a letdown compared with the Hot Italian Architect.
Bella also took some time to advise Carlo to give up over Alice, because it was clear Alice was into someone her own age and not interested. He said if his mate’s investigations into Victor found nothing, he’d stop hanging around. But of course, we saw some evidence to strongly suggest (because subtle this show is not) that Victor is a wrong’un.
But Alice carrying the expensive bracelet around in a beach bag is just !?!? Even for Cecil’s daughter! She knows it’s valuable. She likes it enough to wear it. Is she subconsciously trying to lose it in the sea? We didn’t see what Victor did after picking up the case and seeing the jewellery, but we did see him put down a wad of cash at the casino, where he insisted that he and Cecil go rather than dine at his hotel (suspicious?) Seems to be a veritable gambler.
Cecil was also envious of Claudine’s ability to command a thousand dollars for one night, but as we’ve seen no evidence of his being able to sing or dance or look glamorous in a dress…
Paola was obsessed with making a cake to win over her beefcake. This ended with a date, but it looked like it was going to be a double date for Betty and the older, chubbier workman. Not sure how he and Betty are going to communicate. (I do love Paola calling Constance by the Italian version of her name, but I imagine the beefcake will really have to come through for her not to get mad over the Constance/Lucian of it all.)
My takeout from Billy’s accident was that he too is enthralled by Alice !? (Not that she didn’t look great in the swimsuit, but she wasn’t wearing that then, and mainly, even if he’s got hormones, she’s been bossing him about patronisingly for a couple of years.) We learned that Danioni – under pressure from his bosses about finding Nish and Gian-Luca – was looking to cut Cecil out with his grappa scheme for the mob. The sniffy twins left – and they also left their dog behind.
There were also some baffling placeholder shots, and the passage of time continues to be weird.
The previously was more or less a replay of the last scene and then it proceeded smoothly on into Rose having to react as Lucian returned to their room, while she was still processing the incriminating picture. So she hid. And then she got very passive aggressive. Not that it would be in her nature to get aggressive, but I suppose if she had, she’d have had to face the fact that she had rejected Lucian sexually – and, as Bella was thinking, she’d have to ask herself what she wanted. Instead, she was Julia’s daughter.
I think it may, for once, be accurate to the period that people kept infantilising Rose (old enough to marry) and Constance (a mother!) But it was irritating to watch Bella seek Julia’s permission to have the sex talk with Rose. It was enlightening as to Julia’s philosophy about sex and how unhelpful that had been to Rose. Also unhelpful that Bella was busy with all the rest of the plot and never got round to it, because she could see that Rose was miserable.
And I know they’re trying to be protective of Constance and her chance of a new life, but Betty and that relative really ought to tell her that her mother had had a stroke, and she really ought to be the one to decide if her son is going to be adopted. But not for a second did they seem to carry out the simple thought experiment of how Constance would react if she found out what they were with-holding or planning to do.
There were couple of contrasting montages involving Rose. In one she was sad and neurotic about sex, while Alice was getting it on with fiancée Victor. In the other, both Rose and Constance were looking at themselves in a mirror (did find this a bit sad and male gazey, because it seemed to be about them thinking about what Lucian saw in them, and a part of me wonders if golden boy is worth all that.)
Rose decided to Go For It, stripping off her robe to reveal some sexy twenties lingerie and play the role of aggressive seductress (as described by Julia.) Despite having snogged Constance so desperately earlier in the day, Lucian did respond, until Rose went even more aggressive and Lucian remembered he was Bella’s son and pointed out This Wasn’t Rose. But I think what she’ll maybe take out of what happened is him recoiling.
Maybe take her to a psychoanalyst, somebody, because Julia has a lot to answer for.
Mark Umbers seems to be having a blast embodying Cecil, who was conspiring like mad, threatening the Hot Italian Architect, stalking his wife (as she went to a Genoan assignment with someone she’d been having an emotional affair with), whining that he wasn’t getting fed, and being used by Bella and Danioni in different ways. And because he had done so much of it with a sense of entitlement, he deserved the last two bits.
Bella sent a message to Gian-Luca via his father, dragging the Count along with her (at least he got to do so knowingly eventually) and ignoring Danioni, because Nish! (Although it was mainly for Lucian.) She would then be informed by Danioni that the planning for the solarium had hit a snag – her majority shares (also Mussolini’s nativism) as a woman. She was untrusting enough of Cecil to follow him and find out he was in cahoots with Danioni, and eventually about the whiskey deal (if not the fact that he wanted the hotel for a money-laundering operation.)
Clearly, she was up to something with the Italian lawyer, Albinesi and Claudine, and by this point I hope they were sneakingly getting Cecil to sign divorce papers. After all the fuss, Henry was absolutely a letdown compared with the Hot Italian Architect.
Bella also took some time to advise Carlo to give up over Alice, because it was clear Alice was into someone her own age and not interested. He said if his mate’s investigations into Victor found nothing, he’d stop hanging around. But of course, we saw some evidence to strongly suggest (because subtle this show is not) that Victor is a wrong’un.
But Alice carrying the expensive bracelet around in a beach bag is just !?!? Even for Cecil’s daughter! She knows it’s valuable. She likes it enough to wear it. Is she subconsciously trying to lose it in the sea? We didn’t see what Victor did after picking up the case and seeing the jewellery, but we did see him put down a wad of cash at the casino, where he insisted that he and Cecil go rather than dine at his hotel (suspicious?) Seems to be a veritable gambler.
Cecil was also envious of Claudine’s ability to command a thousand dollars for one night, but as we’ve seen no evidence of his being able to sing or dance or look glamorous in a dress…
Paola was obsessed with making a cake to win over her beefcake. This ended with a date, but it looked like it was going to be a double date for Betty and the older, chubbier workman. Not sure how he and Betty are going to communicate. (I do love Paola calling Constance by the Italian version of her name, but I imagine the beefcake will really have to come through for her not to get mad over the Constance/Lucian of it all.)
My takeout from Billy’s accident was that he too is enthralled by Alice !? (Not that she didn’t look great in the swimsuit, but she wasn’t wearing that then, and mainly, even if he’s got hormones, she’s been bossing him about patronisingly for a couple of years.) We learned that Danioni – under pressure from his bosses about finding Nish and Gian-Luca – was looking to cut Cecil out with his grappa scheme for the mob. The sniffy twins left – and they also left their dog behind.
There were also some baffling placeholder shots, and the passage of time continues to be weird.
