The Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance (2003)
The Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance (2003) This 4-part PBS documentary studies the Medici of Florence and their relationship to the Italian Renaissance. On its surface, the film is a work of art history; most of the on-screen commentators are art historians. However, it will not take the viewer long to realize that The Medici is just as much about the interface of culture and politics as it is about art. Peppered throughout the series are biographical segments on famous Renaissance figures like Da Vinci, Botticelli, Michelangelo, and even Machiavelli, but their stories are convincingly tied to a broader narrative through their connections to the Medici.
Cumulatively, the documentary charts the rising and falling fortunes of the Medici family from humble bankers, to masters of a financial empire, and eventually to the Papacy and high nobility. The title is an insightful play on words: The Medici were “godfathers” to the Renaissance as a cultural movement by commissioning and manipulating the creative artists as well as Mafiosi of the Renaissance era in their ruthless intrigues and willingness to resort to violence.
Part 1 covers the rise of the Medici from humble origins in the 1300s. Part 2 details their dominance of Florence in the 1400s, most notably under Lorenzo the Magnificent. Part 3 examines how the Medici family bounced back from near ruin and managed to get two of their number elected popes in the early 1500s. This episode further connects the Medici and their Renaissance papacy to the Protestant Reformation. Part 4 explores what the Medici became by the 1600s and their relationship to Galileo during his conflict with the Catholic Church. Despite its broad historical sweep (1300s to 1600s), the film manages to offer a coherent narrative of Renaissance culture and power politics.
