The Belly of an Architect

American architect Stourley Kracklite is commissioned to construct an exhibition in Rome honoring Étienne-Louis Boullée. He begins the planning and early designs while the project faces skepticism from Italian colleagues about Boullée's place in architectural history.

Kracklite's Italian colleagues express doubts about Boullée's inclusion in the architectural pantheon, noting his few built structures and his controversial influence on Speer. They worry the exhibit may be more speculative than authoritative. The tension foreshadows challenges to Kracklite's authority.

While researching the exhibit, Kracklite's personal life frays as his marriage and health deteriorate. He becomes obsessed with Caesar Augustus after hearing that Augustus's wife Livia might have poisoned him. The fixation deepens as symptoms of stomach trouble emerge.

Kracklite experiences recurrent stomach pains and grows suspicious that his wife Louisa may be trying to poison him. The illness intensifies as he questions those around him. The paranoia bleeds into his professional decisions.

Louisa reveals she is pregnant with Kracklite's child, conceived at the moment their train crossed the Italian border. The news shifts the couple's dynamic as they confront the future. The pregnancy adds emotional stakes to the already fragile marriage.

Louisa becomes sexually involved with Caspasian Speckler, the younger co-organiser of the exhibition. The affair complicates loyalties as Speckler begins to exert influence over the project and its funding. Tensions rise between the central figures.

Caspasian Speckler siphons off funds from the exhibition and undermines Kracklite's authority and confidence. He and his Italian associates maneuver behind the scenes, eroding Kracklite's control over the project. The financial strain deepens the disintegration of trust.

Kracklite is seduced by Flavia, Caspasian's sister and a photographer living across from the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana. The liaison draws him further into a web of rival influences and increasingly risky personal entanglements. The affair complicates both personal and professional loyalties.

Casapasian discovers Kracklite and Flavia in flagrante and threatens to tell Louisa. The confrontation escalates paranoia and fear that his personal and professional life will unravel. This moment foreshadows looming ruptures in the project and family.

Louisa decides to leave Kracklite, severing their marriage as the crisis deepens. Kracklite's health continues to decline even as the exhibition presses forward. The separation marks a turning point in both his life and the project.

Kracklite is diagnosed with stomach cancer and given only months to live. The terminal diagnosis compounds the emotional and professional collapse he experiences. The countdown to the ultimate outcome begins.

Nine months after their arrival, the exhibition opens, with Kracklite replaced as director by Caspasian. He watches from a high vantage point as Louisa cuts the ceremonial tape. The completion of the project arrives under a cloud of personal tragedy.

As Louisa cuts the tape, she goes into labor. Kracklite, watching from above, leaps to his death, unable to witness the completion of the project. The film ends with the completion of the exhibition and Kracklite's ultimate sacrifice.