Adagio

Set over a single 24-hour period in modern Rome, the film unfolds as fires burn and power outages ripple through the city. The day highlights fraying institutions and the precarious balance between crime and authority. It situates the story squarely in contemporary times, where technology and corruption intersect in everyday life.

Rome, Italy is depicted as a city fractured by fires and rolling blackouts. The urban landscape appears fragile and crime-scarred, with dimmed streets and crowded transit hubs shaping the action. The decimated setting becomes a tense backdrop for Manuel's mission and the pervasive surveillance that follows.

💰 Corruption

Powerful figures exploit a city in crisis to shield illicit actions and protect their interests. Vasco leverages Manuel's undercover assignment to extract compromising material from a minister and his circle. The minister's political fate depends on hidden alliances, surveillance, and money. The film uses this thread to critique how wealth and influence corrode justice.

👁️ Surveillance

Hidden cameras, signal tracking, and covert transceivers thread through the plot, turning the city into a surveillance trap. Manuel discovers he has been filmed and blackmailed, a weapon wielded by Vasco. The pursuit shows how the powerful watch and manipulate, eroding privacy in public spaces. It invites reflection on technology's role in modern crime.

🔥 Crisis & Decay

Fires and blackouts reveal the fragility of urban life and the persistence of crime in a decaying city. The film juxtaposes the old guard of Rome with a city in turmoil, where loyalty and survival are constantly tested. The atmosphere of crisis drives the plot toward tragedy while exposing the limits of institutions to protect the vulnerable.