A wartime journey where personal desire collides with historical reckoning in a decaying Venice.
Story Structure — 4 Plot Phases
Departure from Asolo
Livia leaves her husband Carlo in Asolo, boarding a car driven by Ugo. The journey toward Venice begins under the shadow of wartime bureaucracy.
Key Events
Departure from Asolo — Livia leaves Asolo in Ugo's car, setting the journey in motion while Carlo remains behind. Characters: CarloLocation: Asolo, Italy
The Journey Begins — The transit phase establishes the wartime setting and Carlo's distant political presence. Characters: CarloLocation: Road to Venice
Vortex of Venice
The city is depicted as a chaotic hub of traffickers and officials. Carlo's political status looms as personal and public spheres begin to collide.
Key Events
Venice Arrival — Arrival in a war-torn Venice filled with traffickers, officials, and adventurers. Characters: CarloLocation: Venice
Convergence of Fates
Historical events accelerate as the war ends. Personal defeats merge with political reckonings, creating a turning point in the narrative.
Key Events
Historical Convergence — Personal defeats intertwine with public historical events as the war's end approaches. Characters: CarloLocation: Venice
The Surprise Awaits — A pivotal revelation or encounter disrupts the expected trajectory of events. Characters: CarloLocation: Venice
Settlement of Accounts
The climax resolves as characters face the consequences of their choices. The narrative closes with a reflection on ruin and historical reckoning.
Key Events
The Surprise Awaits — A pivotal revelation or encounter disrupts the expected trajectory of events. Characters: CarloLocation: Venice
Personal Ruin — The vortex of sybaritic excess and wartime collapse consumes personal destinies. Characters: CarloLocation: Venice
Account Settlement — Historical and political forces settle scores, bringing the narrative to a close. Characters: CarloLocation: Venice
Story Breakdown
Wartime Departure — The inciting movement from Asolo into a fractured Italy.
Marital Separation — Livia leaves Carlo, initiating the physical and emotional journey.
Informer Escort — Ugo's role as both admirer and political informant sets the tone.
Venetian Descent — Arrival in a city consumed by corruption and wartime collapse.
Moral Decay — Venice is portrayed as a hub for traffickers and opportunists.
Bureaucratic Shadow — Carlo's ministry status looms over the chaotic environment.
Personal Ruin — The protagonist's destructive choices lead to inevitable downfall.
Sexual Abandonment — Past desires are revisited as a vortex of self-destruction.
Destiny Shattered — Personal ambitions are swallowed by the city's ruinous atmosphere.
Historical Reckoning — Private defeats merge with the broader collapse of the war.
Political Settlement — Historical forces demand accountability from all participants.
Public vs Private — Individual failures are magnified by wartime political shifts.
Climactic Convergence — The narrative peaks as all threads of betrayal and desire collide.
The Surprise — An unexpected event forces a confrontation with reality.
Final Collapse — The vortex completes its cycle, leaving only ruin.
Narrative Resolution — The story closes with a reflection on loss and historical aftermath.
Aftermath — Characters face the consequences of their wartime choices.
Thematic Closure — The film ends on a note of tragic inevitability.
Livia, the attractive wife of a high-ranking Ministry of the People's Republic official, is accompanied by Ugo, a lawyer, her admirer and her husband's spy, to Venice. There, she is to meet her lover Helmut Schultz, a lieutenant in the infamous SS with whom she is having a passionate love affair. During the journey, Livia retraces the steps of her sexual aberration. But a surprise awaits her in the lagoon city.
