Faith is a fascinating concept – for the majority of people, it is something that is intensely personal and mostly kept quite private for the most part, based on their own unique beliefs and their avoidance of impeding on the beliefs of others. For some, religion is a balm for a tortured soul, for others, the opportunity to get answers to some of life’s most pressing questions. Then some feel impelled to participate in these rituals out of fear or intimidation, which is unfortunately the foundation for the faith of far too many people, whose difficult relationship with the church very rarely provides them the satisfaction that it should. These ideas are amongst the many that appear throughout God Willing (Italian: Se Dio vuole), in which Edoardo Falcone writes and directs a blisteringly funny story of Tommaso, who leads a seemingly perfect life – he’s an expert in the field of heart surgery and as a result has attained enormous wealth. He’s happily married with two wonderful children, and has a relatively pleasant existence, absolutely none of which he attributes to a higher power, whose existence he continuously dismisses. However, when his son announces to the family that he intends to drop out of medical school and take on the life of a priest, our protagonist finds everything falling apart, especially when he becomes acquainted with Father Pietro, an ex convict-turned-priest whose charisma and persuasive rhetoric is behind many young people’s growing interest in the Catholic Church, something that most would view as positive, but which Tommaso sees as just a further opportunity to indoctrinate the impressionable masses, something that he sets out to reverse by any means necessary. A very simple film, but one that is bursting with heart and soul, and more than enough interesting commentary to be effective, God Willing is truly a lot of fun, and manages to pack in some fascinating discussion in the process. 

For about as long as we’ve been a sentient species, we have been debating the nature of existence, and a lot of the discussion revolves around religion and how it factors into our day-to-day lives. The fact that no one knows for sure whether there is merit to these beliefs or if they are just the result of millennia of perpetuating the same mythology remains to be seen, but this has certainly not dissuaded discourse that is robust at the best of times, terrifying at the worst. God Willing is a film that attempts to examine this debate, albeit from the perspective of a more comedic, upbeat story that does not take itself too seriously, while still being quite an earnest investigation into faith and the role it plays in our daily lives, as well as its status as perhaps the biggest source of societal conflict we have ever known. Religion and science are viewed as mutually exclusive concepts in most cases – what one cannot explain seemingly falls to the other, and they exist in a bizarre tug-of-war in which everyone is expected to choose a side and fight for their right to believe in one theory over another, with very little room for them to come together in any logical way. In reality, there have been countless tremendous thinkers on both sides who have set out to cross the theoretical aisle and show that there is merit in both arguments. However, this is slightly pointless for a film such as this, which uses the debate as the foundation for a series of increasingly unhinged moments between two characters who are ferociously dedicated to their particular beliefs, so much so that any attempt to sway them is viewed as a personal attack. Add to this conversations around family and how we influence those we are closest to in unexpected ways, and we find that God Willing is a very profound film, even at its most simplistic.

God Willing is the kind of film that only manages to leave an impression based on how much the viewer is willing to engage with its ideas, and having strong actors playing the central roles can make a considerable difference when it comes to defining the overall structure and the realisation of its underlying ideas. This film is anchored by two very good performances, delivered on behalf of Marco Giallini and Alessandro Gassmann, the former playing the secular surgeon who has abandoned religion and seems to believe that everything he has was earned through the fruits of his labour, rather than anything to do with divine intervention, whereas the latter is the happy-go-lucky priest who has set out to conceal his storied past in the hopes of reinventing himself as a community leader. The most compelling aspect of these performances – and by extension the entire film – is that they are both wonderfully engaging characters that exist purely on the surface, never being too complex or developed to the point where our interest in them falters when we don’t receive the resolution we expect. They’re both very capable actors with long, sprawling careers, and while neither of them are necessarily doing career-best work, they’re nonetheless delivering strong performances that feels very much aligned with the core principles of the film, with the director making exceptional use of the two stars, as well as the small but still exceptional supporting cast, to develop the ideas that linger beneath the surface of the film, which is done quite creatively and with a lot of careful attention to the details that define the film and everything that it ultimately sets out to represent, quietly and methodically crafting memorable protagonists that provide the conceptual support for the narrative and assist in making the film well worth our time.

Conceptually, God Willing is a good film, and the solid performances support the sometimes more intense subject matter, which comes about as a byproduct of the topic being discussed rather than being intentionally placed there by design. However, the elements that bind this film together and make it so wonderfully engaging are found in how the film is executed. No one steps into this film with the expectation that its going to be a layered, complex study of faith and the role it plays in society – Falcone’s work as both a writer and director has allowed him to participate in over a dozen productions that are mostly quite lightweight, simple affairs that blend humour and pathos in increasingly interesting ways, but where the intentions are always to deliver a simple message with an abundance of heart and a lack of confusion, which is why we cannot view God Willing as a definitive work in any way, and should instead look at it as a well-crafted exploration of faith from the perspective of someone who has seemingly given up on religion, but is forced to re-assess his stubborn opinion after a series of misadventures. On the surface, God Willing draws from some common playbooks – the odd couple scenario intermingles with the broad social satire and earnest buddy comedy, all of which come together to create quite an enticing, compelling work that is genuinely very funny, but also simple in a way that could frustrate those looking for something deeper and more profound, neither of which are much of a priority with this film. Falcone creates a film that straddles the line between amusing and melodramatic, being very careful to draw that distinction and not cross too heavily into one or the other, but maintaining a solid balance between the two broad concepts, which ultimately constitute this charming film.

God Willing is about as far from a serious, sobering account of religion and the role it plays in guiding our lives, but it still makes some very pertinent, meaningful statements in the process. It’s a wickedly entertaining film, and running at only 87 minutes, it never outstays its welcome. The emotions are firm and recognizable – it can veer towards being slightly too heavy-handed in a few moments, and the conclusion is kept ambiguous in a way that can be frustrating, but at its core, the film is a very effective account of religious belief and how it can define the lives of those who choose to follow it, extracting their personal meaning from subjects that would be otherwise one-dimensional in the hands of a less compassionate filmmaker. The empathy shown towards this film is fascinating – it refuses to preach, and instead encourages every viewer to consider their relationship with their faith (or lack thereof in some instances), reflecting on the central ideas while also not neglecting the unhinged joy that pulsates throughout. Some wonderful performances from a great cast, a simple but meaningful execution and some very compelling conversations that lead to a lot of provocative thought, even if it can be quite obvious. Simple but effective, and driven by a lot of heart and confidence in its own intelligence, God Willing is a lot of fun, and the perfect distraction from more serious, sombre social dramas that tackle similar ideas, just with a considerably duller, less impactful sense of humour or commitment to its premise.