REVIEW: In ‘Pure Unknown,’ one doctor tries to restore identity, humanity, dignity
Photo: Dr. Cristina Cattaneo is the main subject of the moving Italian documentary Pure Unknown. Photo courtesy of Bertha DocHouse / Provided by press agent with permission.
The new documentary Pure Unknown, directed by Valentina Cicogna and Mattia Colombo, is a moving and studious account of the work of Dr. Cristina Cattaneo, an Italian forensic researcher who tries to bring identity, humanity and dignity into her autopsy room. The doctor is tasked with a difficult obligation: The nameless and unidentified remains of people found in Italy sometimes end up in her care, and it’s her team’s job to figure out the clues and try to find out the name of the person in front of them. The quest for answers can be challenging, especially when there are few forensic clues and much of society has cast these missing persons aside. Those who die and are never claimed by a family member sometimes get lost to history, forever remaining an open case. Cattaneo, to her immense credit, does not stop in her efforts to reverse this trend.
Pure Unknown, which plays this weekend at the Bertha DocHouse’s Italian Doc Season in London, follows Cattaneo’s clinical, precise work in the autopsy room, including scenes where she’s teaching her practice to a captive audience of students. A pacemaker that a person might have could crack the case because of its individualized serial number. An identifying tattoo could prove all the difference between anonymity and identity. Chipped teeth or washed-out pictures are puzzle pieces for these researchers, and watching them piece everything together makes for an engaging, fascinating, distressing documentary.
The real world hovers around the work of Cattaneo. The remains that she must catalog and work with are often tied to larger stories impacting society. For example, one of the main narrative threads in the 92-minute film deals with a horrible tragedy that saw hundreds of migrants die on their journey from Africa to Italy. As it stands, there are few mechanisms in place throughout Europe to properly identify the victims of these unfortunate circumstances. DNA work needs to be paid for and commissioned. Families need to be contacted. Agencies in various countries need to talk with one another. But with only a few exceptions, the business of connecting-the-dots is not a business that Europe (or the world) seems that interested in conducting.
Cattaneo must not only be a forensic scientist but also an activist for the cause. In the film, she doesn’t get involved in the convoluted politics of the migrant crisis that impacted Europe a few years ago (and continues to be a debated issue in governments). Instead, she makes her appeal to any audience that will listen, and she drives home the point of returning answers to grieving families, of the mental health considerations of parents who cannot find their children, of the larger societal call to be humane for those who have died. Her words and constant work, with her two trusty dogs by her side, is inspiring, but it’s an uphill battle she’s fighting.
One of the most moving scenes in the documentary involves an Albanian family searching for a young woman who went missing years ago. This young woman became trapped in a sex trafficking and prostitution ring, and Cattaneo’s team may have her remains this many years later. The process by which the young woman’s sister must identify the body is difficult to watch because it’s an emotional experience, one that provides answers but also confirms the worst outcome. Cattaneo, ever the calming, careful presence in the room, steps this family member through the process — returning identity, humanity and dignity to someone who had these foundational qualities taken away from them in life.
Pure Unknown is powerful, visceral storytelling about an issue that should be considered and addressed in society. Cattaneo is a tireless work for the cause and one who makes a most engaging documentary subject.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Pure Unknown (2023). Directed by Valentina Cicogna and Mattia Colombo. In Italian with English subtitles. Running time: 92 minutes. Plays Saturday, Jan. 27 at Bertha DocHouse’s Italian Doc Season in London. Starring Dr. Cristina Cattaneo. Rating: 
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