Parthenope (2024)

A modern mythological tale that’s just as much a love letter to the city of Naples as it is to its titular heroine, this drama follows a young girl born by the sea and named after a magical siren as she grows up into such a breathtaking beauty that strangers on the street, friends, and even her own brother (Daniele Rienzo) are completely captivated by her. Parthenope (Celeste Dalla Porta) herself gets distracted with the notion of pursuing a career in acting, but a life in front of the camera is not enough for her, so she commits to studying anthropology under wizened professor Devoto Marotta (Silvio Orlando). She meets other interesting characters along the way, including Gary Oldman as real-life writer John Cheever, and Simona Capozzi, with whom she has a steamy (in the most literal sense) sapphic encounter. The real MVP is Margherita Aresti, who displays her fully nude body for a crowd of intense onlookers. But while Celeste herself dons several different string bikinis, when it comes whether she goes nude, the answer is a big Parthe-nope!