What Clues Does “Spring” Offer that Louise was Previously Angelo’s Wife?
Spring (2014) is, above everything else, a film about the wonderful benefits and dangers of being in love. Though the film ultimately votes in favor of love being worth its challenges, the narrative also explores the dangers that such love entails.
When Evan (Lou Taylor Pucci) arrives in Italy, he accepts a farming job in exchange for lodging at the home of Angelo (Francesco Carnelutti), an aging man who, as Evan learns after seeing and inquiring about a photo of a woman in Angelo’s kitchen, was widowed when his wife passed in a car accident many years earlier.
After it’s revealed that Evan’s love interest Louise (Nadia Hilker) is a centuries-old creature who resurrects herself every 20 years through an outlandish scientific process, it raises some questions in the minds of curious viewers - namely, was she Angelo’s wife?
The answer is never given, but a few clues to the possibility exist. Chief among them comes in an exchange between Evan and Louise where she tells him a story of intentionally driving off a cliff once in her past. Why mention this specific death if it didn’t relate?
Towards the end of the film, when Evan realizes he’s in love with Louise despite her unique needs, Angelo is seen praying at a nearby church, clutching a photo of his late wife. It’s seemingly been decades since her death, and he’s clearly not over the loss. The camera cuts from this scene to one of Evan approaching Louise, as if to suggest the cyclical existence of her relationships. As one man mourns her, another is brimming with new passions. It’s not only a clue to Angelo’s past, but a scenario perfectly suited to the film’s themes.
Louise and Angelo also never share a scene together. This is more of an analytical clue than anything else, but is logical if she is supposed to be his former wife.
The counter-argument to these clues is the photograph itself. When Evan attempted to take a picture of Louise, her face was distorted and blurry. If she was Angelo’s wife, how did he obtain a clear photo of her? This may indicate she wasn’t his wife, and Angelo is merely a neutral character vehicle to assist Evan’s realization that even though love can lead to serious pain, it’s worth the risk for the time it lasts.