Written and directed by Susanna Nicchiarelli in 2022 and presented in competition at the 79th Venice International Film Festival, Chiara follows the life of Clare of Assisi, played by Margherita Mazzucco.
Set in Assisi in 1211, Clare abandons her wealthy family against her father’s will and an arranged marriage to embrace poverty and join the mendicant order of Saint Francis of Assisi and his followers. At first, her vocation is misunderstood, but her reputation grows among local women, drawn by her humility and her unintentional miracles. Francis, returning from a journey to Egypt where he met the Sultan, visits Clare, but their relationship appears strained after the approval of the Franciscan Rule, which Clare sees as a betrayal of his original message. As Francis’s health declines, the two grow closer again. After his death, the Pope authorizes the creation of a female order led by Clare in San Damiano, on the condition that it embraces the cloistered life.