Padre Pio (film)

• Shia LaBeouf as Padre Pio[3]
• Marco Leonardi as Gerardo
• Salvatore Ruocco as Vincenzo
• Luca Lionello as Silvestro

The film also features an appearance from Asia Argento, who portrays Tall Man.[4][5]

According to Abel Ferrara, actor Willem Dafoe had suggested to the director that Shia LaBeouf be cast for the film's lead role. After Ferrara held several Zoom calls with LaBeouf, the latter agreed to join the film.[6]

Filming occurred in Puglia, Italy, in January 2022.[7] To prepare for his role, LaBeouf visited regularly a friary of the Franciscan Capuchin friars in Solvang, California. He and another friar visited San Giovanni Rotondo, where the film was also shot, and slept in a bed that Padre Pio had also used.[6] During the film's production, as a result of his spiritual experiences, LaBeouf converted to Catholicism. For the film, LaBeouf also refused to use an Italian accent to portray Pio, despite Ferrara's request that he do so, as the project had become too personal and important to wear a "mask".[8]

The film premiered on 2 September 2022[9] in competition in the Giornate Degli Autori section of the 2022 Venice International Film Festival.[10] It received a four-minute ovation, mostly seated, at the premiere.[11]

In March 2023, it was announced that Gravitas Ventures acquired North American rights to the film, which will be released in the United States on June 2, 2023.[12]

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 36% approval rating based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 4.6/10.[13]

Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian gave the film a positive review, with a 3/5 rating, writing that it is "a weird film...with an undeveloped, improvised feel, like a fragment or shard of something else. Yet there is a background hum there...an awareness of something dark and malign. It is a minor film, but interesting."[4]

Ewan Gleadow of Cult Following wrote that "deep at the heart of Abel Ferrara and Shia LaBeouf’s collective passion project, Padre Pio, is a good war movie," but ultimately he gave the film a mixed review.[14]

Jordan Mintzer of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a negative review, describing it as "clunky" and criticizing its political themes for possessing "the subtlety of a cartoon for preschoolers".[15]

• Padre Pio: Between Heaven and Earth (2000)
• Padre Pio: Miracle Man (2000)

• Padre Pio at IMDb