Pier Paolo Pasolini spent the last day of his earthly life in what was actually a very pleasant way: He worked on finishing his new film, Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (Salò - le 120 giornate di Sodoma) (1975); received a journalist for an interview; had a visit from Laura Betti; wrote and read; then met up with Ninetto Davoli for dinner; after which he went in search of a lad for the rest of the night. The next morning he was found beaten to death on the beach at Ostia. A young man was convicted of the crime, but no one really wants to believe that he was solely to blame, a murder in the heat of the moment.
One of the many merits of Abel Ferrara's Pasolini is that he refrains from any speculation beyond what is on record. Instead, New York's indie cinema titan attempts to draw a picture of PPP from the authenticated events of those almost 36 hours and the projects that occupied Pasolini at the time, from which it becomes clear why the work of this key figure of post-war culture is still of such eminent importance today - what we can and should still learn from him in terms of attitude and thought.
