Loosely based on the experiences of real-life porn sensation Rocco Siffredi, known as the “Italian Stallion,” Netflix’s “Supersex” isn’t actually very sexy at all. Instead, the seven-part series, created by Francesca Manieri, is a tale about family, masculinity and toxic bonds. While the show, which stars Alessandro Borghi in the lead role, has some interesting chapters, the surrealist elements — including some hallucinatory moments and the bizarre way some of the sex scenes are filmed — make it more than a biographical account. Instead, it’s an overly complex examination of relationships and the vices people indulge in to escape their emotional turmoil.
“Supersex” opens in Parigi in 2004 with the world-renowned Rocco speaking at a sex convention. Still youthful and energetic, he shocks the porn world by announcing his retirement. For Rocco, porn acting has always been more than just a job, and to understand why, Manieri and the series’ directors turn their lens to the Italian Stallion’s past.
Series opener “Superpower” acts mainly as a coming-of-age story. Following Rocco’s retirement news, the show zips back to 1974. Ten-year-old Rocco Tano feels trapped in the impoverished rural town of Ortona and lost in the chaos of his family life. His mother is devoted to his mentally disabled brother Claudio, and Rocco lives in the shadow of his charismatic older half-brother, Tommaso (Adriano Giannini). Tommaso is Rocco’s North Star. He represents a type of freedom and hypermasculinity that appears out of reach for the men of Ortona. Tommaso also has the love of the town’s most stunning woman, Lucia (Jasmine Trinca), which only endears Rocco to him further.
In addition to examining Rocco’s family dynamic, “Supersex” zooms in on his fixation on sex, which begins at a very young age. The series unpacks his crush on Lucia and later his discovery of “Supersex,” a pornography magazine starring Gabriel Pontello. The euphoria from observing and later engaging in sex is a feeling Rocco chases across the next three decades. But his sex work comes at the expense of his mental health. It also destroys the romances and familial bonds he tries to form and maintain.
Interestingly, the birth of Rocco Siffredi, the porn legend, isn’t depicted in the series. Though the moniker is adopted from the gangster Roch Siffredi in the 1970 French film “Borsalino,” Rocco’s transformation from a sex enthusiast into a full-blown star happens in stages. As a young waiter in a Paris café run by Tommaso, Rocco notices the effect he has on women. This attention aligns with the financial and social status he hopes to achieve. Still, his burgeoning sexuality and eventual domination in the porn industry come amid his defiance of Tommaso.
Despite a lifelong admiration of Tommaso’s machismo, his brother’s treatment of Lucia, who funds their lifestyle through her sex work on the streets of Paris, slowly shifts Rocco’s point of view. An invitation to a sex club awakens previously unknown desires. Becoming a porn star gives him financial security, but his inner turmoil stems from trying to live up to the expectations his family places on him.
“Supersex” dwells far too long on Rocco’s dysfunctional brotherhood with Tommaso, giving the toxic and exhausting connection unneeded exposition. Fewer episodes and less time spent on the self-destructive café manager would have kept the storyline squarely on Rocco’s psyche. Moreover, Manieri positions Lucia’s life as a counternarrative to Rocco’s. As with Rocco’s female co-stars, she isn’t allowed the same agency and status he obtains. Women are sexualized and then vilified for being sexual in the same breath. While Lucia eventually finds herself on a new path, it’s not without suffering and sacrifice, difficulties Rocco never contends with. The pair are an intriguing juxtaposition, but this mirroring gets muddled under their dark pull toward Tommaso. Similarly, Rocco’s enthusiasm for rough sex acts is never fully explored.
Still, “Supersex” makes some smart choices. Intercourse and other types of sex are showcased, of course, but these scenes aren’t gratuitous. Instead, they illustrate Rocco’s emotional state as he deals with loss and yearning or even demonstrate his self-worth.
The penultimate episode, “Resurrection of the Bodies,” is the standout and centers on Rocco’s return to Ortona amid his mother’s illness and one of the biggest highlights of his career, winning best European actor at the Hot d’Or Awards. In 53 minutes, Rocco confronts the effects of shame and how so-called family members react to him when he’s no longer playing by their rules.
Though Rocco’s story is solidly depicted, audiences hoping for a bio-series-type narrative won’t find it here. It’s also worth noting that Netflix offers a dubbed English version, but the show is best viewed in Italian with subtitles. Overall, “Supersex” isn’t just an examination of one man’s life and career but a look at the lives people create, however unconventional, when they dare to move through the world as their most authentic selves.
“Supersex” premieres March 6 on Netflix.
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