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James Marsh

3.5/5 stars
The first Italian-language feature from prolific Catalan filmmaker Isabel Coixet, Three Goodbyes is an emotional, ultimately life-affirming adaptation of Michela Murgia’s celebrated 2023 semi-autobiographical novel, published shortly before her death.
Anchored by a commanding central performance from Alba Rohrwacher, it charts the efforts of a high-school teacher in Rome to navigate a series of potentially life-altering challenges.
When her long-term partner, Antonio (Elio Germano), announces unexpectedly that he is leaving her, Marta (Rohrwacher) is immediately overwhelmed, both emotionally and physically. Her interfering yet well-meaning younger sister Elisa (Silvia D’Amico) insists that Marta see a gastroenterologist, and the subsequent diagnosis deals her a devastating blow.


Rather than sending her deeper into despair, however, the news that her time is limited presents Marta with a reinvigorated perspective on the world and her place in it. She becomes more invested in the personal struggles of her students and welcomes the attention of her handsome colleague, Agostino (Francesco Carril).
Marta also develops a peculiar infatuation with a famous K-pop idol, Jirko, after finding a cardboard standee of him in the street, and even starts learning Korean. These elements mirror Murgia’s own journey, as the author became a passionate fan of K-pop boy band BTS during her lengthy battle against kidney cancer.
While the film’s title makes no effort to hide the narrative’s sombre trajectory, Coixet ensures that Three Goodbyes sidesteps many of the familiar tropes associated with terminal illness dramas.
Instead, what unfolds is a celebration of life and the tangible pleasures of our surroundings – and few settings are better equipped to illustrate this than the narrow, cobbled streets, cosy trattorias and sun-dappled riverbanks of the Italian capital.

Diplomatically, the film also makes time to explore Antonio’s post-break-up perspective, refusing to demonise him or subject him to trite clichés.
A passionate chef and restaurateur, he did not leave Marta for another woman, as everybody immediately assumes, and even resists the temptations of a young, attractive colleague (Galatea Bellugi). Rather, he became overwhelmed by his partner’s persistent negativity, which Marta begrudgingly accepts and spends her remaining time addressing.
Despite a somewhat episodic structure that leaves a number of plot threads frustratingly unresolved – much like life itself – the result is a quietly affecting piece of work.
The underlying message may be nothing more profound than to appreciate what we have in the time gifted to us, but Coixet succeeds in elevating something as mundane as a rice ball or as fleeting as a stolen kiss to the stature of a life goal, to be treasured forever.
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Isabel Coixet’s adaptation of Michela Murgia’s celebrated novel highlights how we should appreciate what we have in the time gifted to us


Isabel Coixet’s adaptation of Michela Murgia’s celebrated novel highlights how we should appreciate what we have in the time gifted to us.


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.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Isabel Coixet’s adaptation of Michela Murgia’s celebrated novel highlights how we should appreciate what we have in the time gifted to us

Isabel Coixet’s adaptation of Michela Murgia’s celebrated novel highlights how we should appreciate what we have in the time gifted to us