365 Days (2020 film)

365 Days (Polish: 365 Dni) is a 2020 Polish erotic romantic drama film directed by Barbara Białowąs and Tomasz Mandes. It is based on the first novel of a trilogy by Blanka Lipińska.[2][3][4] The plot follows a young woman from Warsaw in a spiritless relationship falling for a dominant Sicilian man, who imprisons and imposes on her a period of 365 days for which to fall in love with him. It stars Michele Morrone as Don Massimo Torricelli and Anna-Maria Sieklucka as Laura Biel. The film was released theatrically in Poland on 7 February 2020 and was later made available on Netflix on 7 June 2020,[5] quickly gaining global attention.[3][5][6] It was one of the most watched items in numerous territories on multiple continents, and had one of the longest periods as the most watched item on Netflix in the United States' history. The film however received overwhelmingly negative reviews from critics, who heavily criticized its softcore themes and sexual violence.

365 Days
Theatrical release poster
Polish365 Dni
Directed by
  • Barbara Białowąs
  • Tomasz Mandes
Produced by
  • Maciej Kawulski
  • Ewa Lewandowska
  • Tomasz Mandes
Screenplay by
Based on365 Dni
by Blanka Lipińska
Starring
Music by
  • Michał Sarapata
  • Mateusz Sarapata
CinematographyMateusz Cierlica
Edited byMarcin Drewnowski
Production
companies
  • Ekipa Sp. z o.o.
  • Future Space
  • Next Film
  • TVN
Distributed byNext Film
Release date
  • 7 February 2020 (2020-02-07) (Poland)
Running time
114 minutes
CountryPoland
Language
  • Polish
  • Italian
  • English
Box office$9.5 million[1]

Plot

After a meeting between the Torricelli Sicilian Mafia crime family and black market dealers, Massimo Torricelli watches a beautiful woman on a beach. Then, Massimo and his father, leader of the Sicilian Mafia family, were both shot by the dealers; Massimo survives while his father dies from his injuries.

Five years later, Massimo is now the leader of the Torricelli crime family. In Warsaw, Laura Biel, a fiery executive, is unhappy in her relationship with her boyfriend Martin. Laura celebrates her 29th birthday in Italy but after Martin embarrasses her, she goes for a walk and runs into Massimo, who kidnaps her.

At his villa, Massimo reveals to Laura that she was the woman at the beach five years ago and that when he was injured, all he could think about was her. After searching for years and finally spotting her, he had to have her and intends to keep her as a prisoner for 365 days until she falls in love with him. He also promises her that he will not touch her without her consent, whilst simultaneously having his hands around her throat and touching her. When she tries to escape, he does not let her leave.

As they spend time together, Laura teases him and then refuses to have sex with him. However, she slowly starts to get him to open up about his personal life. At a hotel in Rome, she teases him again and he cuffs her to the bed. She is forced to watch Massimo receive oral sex from another woman. Afterward, she appears to want to give in. However, he stops, releases her, and orders her to get dressed for a club.

At the club, Laura flaunts herself for Massimo and his friends, angering him. When she begins to flirt with a man from the rival mafia family, the man gropes her against her will. Massimo and the others draw their weapons while Laura is taken out of the club. The following morning, she awakens on a yacht to Massimo and his fellow mafioso, Mario, arguing. During the night, Massimo shot the man's hand who had groped Laura, inciting a mafia war between the two families. Laura attempts to apologize, but Massimo blames her for the incident. As they argue, Laura falls into the water and starts to panic. Massimo jumps in to save her. When she awakens, he admits he was scared she might not make it and does not want to lose her. They make love on the yacht.

Massimo allows Laura to visit her family in Warsaw. He tells her he loves her and will join her after finishing up business. In Warsaw, Laura waits for Massimo for days with no contact. She reconnects with Olga and they go clubbing. She runs into Martin, who says he has been looking for her to apologize. He attempts to convince her to reconcile and follows her back to her apartment, where Massimo is unexpectedly waiting. While having sex, she opens his shirt to see wounds from the mafia war. She confesses to him that she loves him. The following morning, Massimo proposes and she accepts. However, she asks him to keep his "occupation" a secret from her parents.

Back in Italy, Mario informs Massimo of rising tensions. Laura mentions feeling unwell but brushes off seeing a doctor. They discuss their upcoming wedding that her family is not allowed to attend, as she does not want them to discover what Massimo does. However, Massimo allows Olga to come as Laura's bridesmaid. When Olga visits, Laura reveals she is pregnant. Olga urges her to tell Massimo about the pregnancy. Meanwhile, Mario receives a phone call from a Torricelli informant that the rival mafia family is about to kill Laura. Laura's car enters a tunnel but does not come out the other side. Mario rushes to find Massimo just as Laura's call drops. Realizing the implications, Massimo breaks down, as a police car blares at the entrance of the tunnel.

Cast

Production

The film scenes were primarily shot in Poland (Warsaw, Krakow and Niepołomice) and in Italy (Sanremo).[8]

Soundtrack

The film's theme song "Feel It",[9] along with the songs "Watch Me Burn", "Dark Room" and "Hard for Me", are sung by Morrone. The songs "I See Red," "Give Em Hell" and "Wicked Ways" were sung by Everybody Loves an Outlaw, a.k.a. Bonnie and Taylor Sims.[10] "I See Red" made #1 on Spotify's Viral 50 chart in the US, with "Hard for Me" also in the top 5.[10] Morrone and Everybody Loves an Outlaw entered the top 10 of Rolling Stone's Breakthrough 25 Chart.[10]

Release

365 Days was released in Poland on 7 February 2020, grossing $9 million.[1] In the United Kingdom, the film received a limited theatrical release on 14 February 2020, and grossed $494,181,[1] before premiering on Netflix in June 2020.[11]

Reception

The film made the top three most viewed items on Netflix in numerous territories, including Germany, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, Turkey, Sweden, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Greece, Romania, South Africa, Portugal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Mauritius, Canada, Israel, New Zealand, Malaysia, and the United States.[12][13] It was the first movie to have two multiday periods as Netflix's #1 movie in the US: it was #1 for 4 days, then replaced in that position by Da 5 Bloods, but then, 3 days later, returned to #1. The film has thus had 10 days as #1, the second highest in the chart's history.[14]

365 Days drew parallels with the 2015 erotic drama Fifty Shades of Grey.[15][11][16][17] It was criticised for romanticising kidnapping and rape.[18][19][20][21] Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes collected 15 reviews and identified 0% of them as positive, with an average rating of 1.9/10.[22]

Jessica Kiang of Variety described the film as "a thoroughly terrible, politically objectionable, occasionally hilarious Polish humpathon".[23] The Guardian, after citing other media – "Variety called it 'dumber-than-hair'. Cosmopolitan labelled it 'the worst thing I’ve ever seen'" – highlights the film's "dismal dialogue", poor character development and unsexy sex scenes.[24]

On June 17, 2020, Collectif Soeurcières, a French feminist collective, started an online petition through Change.org, addressing Netflix France, to pull the film from streaming availability. As of August 16, it gained 40,000 signatures.[25] On July 2, 2020, singer Duffy wrote an open letter, addressing Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, criticizing the film for glamorizing sexual violence. "This should not be anyone’s idea of entertainment, nor should it be described as such, or be commercialized in this manner", she said.[26] After this, another Change.org petition, initiated by social media influencer Mikayla Zazon, gained over 70,000 signatures.[27] On July 8, 2020, PTC president Timothy F. Winter requested Netflix to remove the film from the platform.[28]

Sequel

Plans have been made to work on a sequel, but have been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[29]

References
  1. "365 Days (2020)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  2. "365 dni". Lubimyczytać.pl. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  3. Sharma, Dhruv (21 May 2020). "Will There be a 365 Dni Sequel?". The Cinemaholic.
  4. "How Does '365 dni' on Netflix Compare to the Book?". 9 June 2020.
  5. Spencer, Ashley (2 July 2020). "How '365 Days' Became One of Netflix's Worst-Reviewed Big Hits" – via NYTimes.com.
  6. "Netflix stands by hit film 365 Days despite Duffy's sex trafficking criticism". 4 July 2020 – via www.theguardian.com.
  7. "365 dni" – via www.filmweb.pl.
  8. Sharma, Dhruv (1 June 2020). "Where Was 365 Days Filmed? Netflix's 365 Dni Filming Locations".
  9. "Video". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  10. Hissong, Samantha (7 July 2020). "Music From Netflix's Erotic Romance '365 Days' Is Shooting Up the Charts".
  11. Finnis, Alex (9 June 2020). "365 DNI: why the obscure Polish erotic book adaptation is causing a stir on Netflix UK". i.
  12. ""365 dni" hitem Netflixa na świecie! Blanka Lipińska po angielsku dziękuje swoim zagranicznym fanom". Tele Magazyn (in Polish).
  13. Roweles, Dustin (14 June 2020). "Box Office: 'The King of Staten Island' & The Most-Watched Movies At Home This Weekend". Uproxx. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  14. Bean, Travis. "'365 Days' Achieved Three Huge Netflix Milestones This Past Weekend". Forbes.
  15. "Viewers shocked by graphic sex scenes in new Netflix movie". NewsComAu. 9 June 2020.
  16. Nolan, Emma (9 June 2020). "'365 Dni' on Netflix Graphic Sex Scenes Between Michele Morrone and Anna Maria Sieklucka's Characters Shock Fans". www.newsweek.com. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  17. "Polish '50 Shades of Grey' 365 Dni is coming to Netflix UK". Evening Standard. 26 May 2020.
  18. Desk, Pinkvilla (9 June 2020). "365 DNI: Viewers criticise the erotic drama film of romanticising kidnapping and Stockholm syndrome". PINKVILLA. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  19. Żelazko, Basia (9 June 2020). "Zagraniczni widzowie znaleźli "365 dni" na Netfliksie. Ich komentarze nie zostawiają złudzeń". film.wp.pl.
  20. "Erotic Netflix thriller slammed for 'romanticising Stockholm syndrome'". The Independent. 10 June 2020.
  21. Tangcay, Jazz (11 June 2020). "How the '365 Days' DP Shot Those Authentic-Looking Sex Scenes in Netflix's Steamy Drama".
  22. "365 Days (365 dni) (2020)". Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  23. Jessica Kiang (10 June 2020). "'365 Days': Film Review". Variety. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  24. Heritage, Stuart (23 June 2020). "365 Days: the Netflix softcore porn film that people can't stop watching". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  25. "An Online Petition To Have 365 Days Taken Off Netflix Is Circulating In Quebec". MTL Blog. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  26. Grater, Tom (2 July 2020). "Singer Duffy wants Netflix to remove '365 Days,' says film 'glamorizes rape'". New York Post. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  27. "70,000 sign petition to ban Netflix film after Duffy's open letter". Evening Standard. 9 July 2020. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  28. Times, The Washington (5 August 2020). "Calls mount for Netflix to pull Polish erotica '365 Days'". The Washington Times. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  29. "Zdjęcia do drugiej części filmu "365 dni" przełożone na przyszły rok". Onet Kultura. 28 May 2020.
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