“The Thirteenth Apostle” is a phrase familiar to admirers of the cult film Kevin Smith about two fallen angels (in the sparkling performance of Matt Damon and his friend Oscar-winning Ben Affleck) “Dogma”. According to the plot, replete with slightly blasphemous jokes, the same “13th” Rufus (played by Chris Rock) did not enter the Bible because he was dark-skinned. But the Italians just such a name - “The Thirteenth Apostle” - gave their new series (though adding one more word as a subtitle - “The Chosen One”).
Riddles of the Vatican
The Vatican clergyman Gabriel Antinori works in a special department designed to investigate and (if possible) explain various paranormal incidents. In the first episode of the television series The Thirteenth Apostle, the theologian accidentally finds an ally who can help his research in the realm of the other world. This is the psychologist Claudia Munari. They encountered one of the strange cases (levitating children): the priest was in the house for his “detective” affairs, and Claudia was a social educator who was going to find out why the children were not attending school. So this acquaintance began, which grew into cooperation.
Another couple
An atheist and skeptic, Munari is too sober-minded to believe in otherworldly forces and the afterlife. But Gabriel had to deal with things unexplained from the point of view of science more than once, and he was set up in a completely different way. Doesn’t resemble anything?
Yes, of course, a clear parallel with Mulder and Scully, the characters in The X-Files, a 9-season series that was tremendously successful. In that couple, too, the man was ready to believe in the supernatural origin of many things that weren’t logically possible, but Dana for a long time remained a “Thomas unbeliever”, criticizing the incredible theories of Fox and bringing under every conceivable and unthinkable scientific basis. But those who invented the film “The Thirteenth Apostle” chose a slightly different path, after all, Gabriel is a priest, not an FBI employee. Although this gives some piquancy to their relationship with Claudia. After all,
Catholic clergy are deprived of the right to carnal manifestations of love, and, apparently, the newly mate partners from the very day of acquaintance are elusively drawn to each other.
Mystery is always attractive
Gabriel and his partner play (that's a coincidence!) The namesake: the handsome Claudio Joey with the charming Claudia Pandolfi. Despite the fact that these actors are not stars, they cope with their work well. The images that they create in the series “The Thirteenth Apostle” are rather ambiguous. And it's not even the nascent romantic feelings. Gabriel, for example, is endowed with a kind of gift that allows you to keep the dying person in this world. His origin is shrouded in mystery, something that happened to him in childhood still does not allow him to sleep peacefully. Ghosts and ominous characters pursue the hero.
The film series are built according to the classical canon: one episode is equal to one riddle. However, do not rush to rejoice: it is far from always in the finale that you will be able to fully understand the origin of a particular phenomenon, some tasks will not find their solution. So, you have the opportunity to reflect on them, for this, see “The Thirteenth Apostle”, the first season of which started on January 4, 2012.