Seduction is a major selling point for A24, which is why the first U.S. trailer for Parthenope has plenty of that.

Celeste Dalla Porta, who plays the title role of Parthenope, oozing her sexiness in different stages of undress throughout the film. She emerges from the ocean wet in a bikini, adorned with religious jewelry that barely covers her modesty, and gets tangled in a foreplay with Dario Aita and Daniele Rienzo.

In the trailer, Gary Oldman’s portrayal of a bloated John Cheever’s single line to Parthenope: ‘Are you aware of the damage your beauty causes?’ suggests a dark side.

Paolo Sorrentino‘s second film about Naples follows 2021’s The Hand of God, and Parthenope, a mysterious and irresistible beauty, is the enigmatic force that the city has. One cannot resist the way the movie looks on screen, dazzling and striking compositions by cinematographer Daria D’Antonio, who also shot The Hand of God, and costumes designed by YSL creative director Anthony Vaccarello, one of the film’s stars.

A24 picked up North American rights to Parthenope ahead of its world premiere in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in May. The Hollywood Reporter gave the film a mixed review at the Cannes, praising Sorrentino’s sumptuous style but calling out a lack of narrative depth. “Sorrentino’s taste for extravagant imagery makes the director indulge his worst instincts, lapsing as he often has in the past into ersatz Fellini…[The film’s] visual flourishes are meant to distract us like shiny objects.”

A24 has yet to set a domestic release date for Pathenope. Plans to position it as an awards-season contender were disrupted when Italy snubbed Oscar-winner Sorrentino and chose Maura Delpero’s Venice Silver Lion Winner, Vermiglio as its entry for the Best International Feature.