Everything Calls for Salvation season 1 review: This Italian drama’s attempt at normalising conversations around mental health misses the mark

Although well intentioned, the writing reduces people with complex mental health conditions into mere caricatures.

Everything Calls for Salvation

Story:

After a night of wild partying, Daniele wakes up in a mental hospital with no recollection of last night’s events. He is told that he will be held under compulsory observation in a psychiatric facility for the next seven days. Daniele tries to make sense of what exactly happened last night, while trying to adjust to his new home for the next seven days.

Review:

Even after all this while, most filmmakers seemingly haven't been able to crack the code when it comes to sensitive depictions of mental health and trauma. The makers of Everything Calls for Salvation seem to have had their hearts in the right place when it comes to the Italian drama’s premise, intending to helm a series that tries to normalise conversations around mental health. But sadly, they have faltered when it comes to execution of the same.

The series follows the story of a troubled young man named Daniele, who finds himself admitted to a psychiatric facility after a wild night out, with no recollection of how he ended up there. Having to spend the next seven days sharing a room with five other patients, Daniele slowly tries to unravel the mystery of how he got admitted there, while trying to accustom himself to his new normal.

Stories centred around mental health are tricky terrain to navigate, even when thoroughly researched and well performed, which is the bare minimum. The way many of the characters in Everything Calls for Salvation are written suggests that the writers have dropped the ball when it comes to proper research about a range of mental illnesses. Apart from the protagonists, the supporting characters’ complex mental health issues and trauma are reduced to nothing but shallow caricatures. Their only purpose seems to be in the form of plot devices or for comic effect. Although the writing has managed to nail some of the nuances in their conditions, the way their characters are fleshed out falls short. Many parts of their complex conditions seem to have been based off of stereotypes.

As predictable as ever, the show’s basic premise revolves around how Daniele is given a fresh new perspective on life after spending a week with his roomates, patients with different mental health conditions. The characters who help him do so are as cliched as ever. There’s the effeminate gay man who instantly falls for Daniele; the wise old veteran who seems out of place in the hospital; the less than bright childlike strongman; the man whose vocabulary is limited to praying to the Virgin Mary; and an immobile man who occassionally appears in Daniele’s dreams with words of wisdom. The way Daniele forms bonds with the odd ball group seem to be inorganic and too rushed, and the awkwardness continues in the rest of their interactions as well. The protagonist’s love story with a female patient, who he has a history with, also falls victim to the inspid writing as well.

Despite the shortcomings in the writing, the way Daniele’s mental health and illness are depicted is beautifully done. The way he explains how it came about for him, his struggles with addiction, the way a seemingly insignificant event triggered a full blown psychotic breakdown; everything is showcased with the sensitivity it needs.

Verdict:

Although well intentioned, Everything Calls for Salvation falls short when it comes to sensitive depictions of mental health conditions, save for that of the protagonist’s. The predictable story and one dimensional characters also come as downfalls in the series.

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