Piero Messina served as Paolo Sorrentino's assistant director on The Great Beauty. The Wait is his directorial debut. It is an intense and dark drama about the pain and agitation of grief and the often surprising ways in which people deal with it.

The opening shot is that of a wooden statue of a crucified Christ in a Catholic church. A devout old woman kisses the feet. Anna (Juliette Binoche) witnesses this religious act and is deeply moved. This mysterious scene takes us to a funeral.

Anna returns to her large Italian villa in the shadow of the Etna volcano left to her by her husband. All of the mirrors are covered in black. Then a stranger arrives: it is Jeanne (Lou de Laage), her son Giuseppi's French girlfriend who was invited by him to spend Easter at the family home. This pretty and baffled young woman can't understand why he is not there to meet her and why he has not answered any of her cellphone calls. As for why all the people have come to the house, Anna tells Jeanne that her brother has died. But we begin to suspect that the funeral was for Giuseppi.

In the midst of her agonizing loss, Anna makes a decision not to tell Jeanne what has happened to her son. Why does she choose to do this? Perhaps she wants to have exclusive ownership of mourning him. Whatever the reason, Anna keeps her secret hidden and repeatedly tells Jeanne that he will arrive on Easter Sunday. The young woman hopes for his return. Meanwhile, Anna listens to the messages Jeanne has left on his phone in order to learn more about her. On walks and over meals, the two women draw closer together.

The Wait is loosely based on Luigi Pirandello's play The Life I Gave You. It has some moving moments of genuine grief -- such as when Anna goes to her son's room and drinks some liquid he left in a cup. While Jeanne goes for underwater swims, Pietro (Giorgio Colangeli), the servant in the mansion, lets Anna know that he disapproves of what she is doing to the pleasant young woman. Seeking some relief from the interminable waiting, Jeanne invites two young men (Antonio Folletto and Domenico Diele) to join them for a dinner prepared by Anna.

Like Paolo Sorrentino, director Messina makes the most out of the sets and scenery of volcanic rocks, the darkened church, and the gloomy villa. We have chosen to interpret The Wait as a study of deep grief but it is possible to take it as a religious drama about the mysteries that prevail from Good Friday until Easter Sunday. Either way, the film deserves a reflective look for those seeking out adventuresome fare.