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In 1937, whenTVFIFIYour browser does not support the element. Benito Mussolini, then Italy’s fascist leader, opened Cinecittà, a sprawling film complex in Rome, his government adopted a variant of a slogan first ascribed to Lenin: “Cinematography is the most powerful weapon.” On January 10th that weapon was turned with relish against any who might be tempted to follow in the dictator’s footsteps. Sky Italia, a satellite- platform, began televising “—” (”M—Son of the Century”), an eight-part dramatisation of Mussolini’s rise to power. The work of a British director, Joe Wright, it is based on a bestselling novel by Antonio Scurati. The series has dazzled critics. Angela Calvini wrote in , a Catholic daily, that “its incisive, unsettling cinematographic style leaves [one] truly speechless.”The violence it depicts will shock many Italians who have been lulled into believing that Mussolini’s rule was pretty harmless. “Mussolini never killed anyone,” declared Italy’s late prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi. “Mussolini used to send people on holiday in internal exile.”“M” is not just a bloodstained period drama, though. It is a cautionary tale of the seductive power of authoritarianism. It opens with Mussolini, played by Luca Marinelli, telling viewers: “There is always a time when lost peoples lean towards simple ideas [and] the wise brutality of strong men.” That is a controversial message in a country whose voters have handed power to a party, the Brothers of Italy (d), with roots in neo-fascism. Conservatives have bristled at the implied comparison.Giorgia Meloni, the prime minister and leader of the d, does not seek a fascist dictatorship. Her policies have been solidly Atlanticist and no more radical than those of many other conservative governments. But with Donald Trump about to re-enter the White House, she may be tempted by a more radical approach. Ms Meloni is friendly with Elon Musk, a major backer of Mr Trump. On January 4th she made an unannounced visit to Mr Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. The incoming president called her “a fantastic woman”.With hard-right parties in government or sharing power in half a dozen European countries, the relevance of “M” goes beyond Italy. Its depiction of the storming by Mussolini’s militia of the Socialist daily recalls the assault on America’s Capitol four years ago. At a dinner, the future dictator tells guests: “We are an anti-party. We practise anti-politics.” And inside parliament, he offers the most enduring message of all. “Democracy is lovely,” he tells viewers. “It gives you a load of freedoms. Even the freedom to destroy it.”
