In November and December, our special series is dedicated to Final Cut: remarkable endings in the broadest sense of the word.
A political dark comedy by the provocative Italian filmmaker Elio Petri (Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion), starring Gian Maria Volonté as the humble worker Lulu.
In his life as a factory laborer, Lulu seems almost fused with the dehumanizing and alienating mechanisms of modern industrial work. However, a workplace accident in which he loses a finger triggers an awakening that radically transforms his attitude toward his job. What follows is a solitary struggle that will push him to the brink of madness.
With expressive visual and auditory elements, Petri vividly captures the brutality of modern industry. The Working Class Goes to Heaven is a surreal dark comedy about the absurd reality of capitalist and industrial exploitation. The film earned Petri the Palme d’Or. Soundtrack by Ennio Morricone, cinematography by Luigi Kuveiller.