On one level, Supersex — the Netflix biographical series about ‘Italian Stallion’ porn star Rocco Siffredi — might be considered outrageously edgy. There’s plenty of graphic nudity, and most plot-lines seem to revolve around the protagonist getting either himself or those in his immediate vicinity naked. But stripped to the bone, you’ll find that it’s the sort of ‘small-man-in-a-big-world’ story that could theoretically have been made by someone like Aanand L Rai or Mahesh Bhatt. It’s about B-tier aspiration, close-knit families, sibling bonds, all at the intersection of male desire and obsession.
Created by Francesca Manieri, the seven-part mini-series tells a fictionalised tale “loosely inspired” by the life of perhaps the most famous porn actor the world has ever seen (every inch of). It begins with Siffredi, clearly unhinged by fame and more than one undiagnosed addiction, announcing before a large gathering that he has decided to retire from the porn industry for good. He doesn’t explain why, but judging by the crowd’s reaction, they might as well have been told that the Beatles had just disbanded. We smash cut to the past, to the town of Ortana, where a pre-pubescent Rocco, before he adopted the stage name ‘Siffredi’, lived with his parents and siblings.
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He’d spend his days ogling the local hottie, Lucia, much to his overbearing mother’s chagrin. Both women would go on to play key roles in Rocco’s life, after he broke free from the confines of his small existence and found himself transforming into an object of fascination and near-fundamentalist fury. More than any other person, however, the person that he most admired as a child was his ‘brother’ Tomasso, a suave young man forever affected by the knowledge that he wasn’t biologically related to the Tanos. They never let him forget it.
As soon as he was able to, Tomasso found work outside Ortana, earned some quick money, and immediately became the hero of his community. But more than his fancy car, his stylish clothes, or even his alluring personality, what truly made him an icon in his peers’ eyes was that he’d somehow landed Lucia. Tomasso transferred all his angst onto Rocco, instilling in the little boy a desire to dream big, but also — and the show doesn’t treat it as such — borderline sexually abusing him.
These opening scenes, with their warring local clans, tight families and nondescript neighbourhoods, are reminiscent not only of ’80s Bollywood cinema, but also of HBO’s monumental adaptation of Elena Ferrante’s My Beautiful Friend books — another bildungsroman about breaking free. This is when we’re shown the events that would shape Rocco’s understanding about intimacy and sexuality. But as early as episode two, the setting changes, as does the cast. Alessandro Borghi takes over the lead role, as Rocco leaves Ortana and begins working with Tomasso in an Italian restaurant in Paris. Having set foot outside his small town for the first time, his mind understandably explodes. Rocco is swayed not by the newly accessible romance and riches, however, but by Paris’ seedy underbelly. Supersex is ultimately a story about choices.
When nearly anybody else would be taken on a tour of Paris’ tourist attractions, Rocco is hauled by Tomasso to the city’s red light district. The show is just as much about their relationship as it is about Rocco’s rise to the top. It’s also paced like a bullet; not a single character in Supersex has any interest in sitting still, although Rocco is certainly prone to introspection. Burdened by an inescapable sense of Catholic guilt, he ploughs through life with the unblinking energy of a bull in a china shop, desecrating everything he touches. An entire episode, for instance, is dedicated to Rocco seemingly finding true love, only to self-destruct when the feelings became undeniable. In another episode, he returns to Ortana to be with his dying mother in her final days. Chapters like this bring a much-needed humanity to the often over-the-top storytelling that Supersex finds itself defaulting to.
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But Borghi is endlessly watchable, even when the show threatens to fly off the rails. He gives Siffredi, who could’ve very easily come across as a detestable man, a sense of vulnerability. It also helps that the character — at least the version of him created for the show — is always the first to point out his flaws. Self-awareness goes a long way in earning the audience’s sympathies, because there is no bigger turn-off than watching a loose cannon fire away, without having any sense of the damage they’re causing.
Supersex
Creator – Francesca Manieri
Cast – Alessandro Borghi, Jasmine Trinca, Adriano Giannini, Jane Pedri, Linda Caridi
Rating – 3/5
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