Italian Films Headed to the Berlin Film Festival & Sundance

A scene from Dafne

Here are the Italian films in the lineup of the 2019 Berlin Film Festival...

ANBESSA by Mo Scarpelli Section: Generation KpPlus

DAFNE by Federico Bondi Section: Panorama

FLESH OUT by Michela Occhipinti
Section: Panorama

HANNAH by Andrea Pallaoro: Homage to Charlotte Rampling

NORMAL by Adele Tulli
Section: Panorama

PIRANHAS by Claudio Giovannesi: Competition

SELFIE by Agostino Ferrente:
Section: Panorama

Agostino Ferrente's Selfie is the story of two Neapolitan teenagers who film themselves with an iPhone to tell about their difficult neighbourhood, their daily life, the friendship that bonds them together.

Federico Bondi's Dafne is the story of a woman with Down syndrome who is coming to terms with the death of her mother while caring for her father.

Adapted from Roberto Saviano's best-selling novel, La Paranoia del Bambini was directed by Claudio Giovanese and speaks of the world of teenage crime bosses in Naples as they compete for power.

Claudio Giavanese's La Paranza dei Bambini

Click here for more information of Berlinale 2919. Stay tuned for more..

The Disappearance of My Mother

The Disappearance of My Mother by Benjamin Barrese is the story of his mother, Benedetta, an iconic former fashion model. Benedetta Barrese rose to fame in the 1960s as a muse to artists Andy Warhol, Salvator Dali, Richard Avedon and Irving Penn. As radical feminist in the 1970s, she fought for the rights and emancipation of women. But at the age of 75, she became fed up with all the roles that life imposed upon her and decided to leave everything and everybody behind, to disappear to a unknown place as far as possible from this world.

Hiding behind the camera, her son Beniamino witnesses her journey. Having filmed her since he was a kid in spite of all her resistance, he now wants to make a film about her, to keep her close for as long as possible – or, at least, as long as his camera keeps running.

The making of the film turns into a battle between mother and son, a stubborn fight to capture the ultimate image of Benedetta – the image of her liberation.

The film will premiere in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.

Those Bad Things

Here in North America, two Italian films have made the official lineup of the 2019 Sundance Film festival.

Loris Giuseppe Nese's Those Bad Things is the story of a daughter whose parents made bad decisions during her childhood. Set in the suburbs in the region of Campania, the days go by slowly as she copes with the consequences of her parents' choices.

The 11-minute short will be shown in the festival's International Narrative Short Films section.

Click here for more information about the Sundance Film Festival.

Comments

Golden Age Masterpiece: Luchino Visconti’s 1957 “White Nights”

Photo Credit: Archivio Luce Cinecittà Luchino Visconti’s 1957 film, “White Nights” (“Le notti bianche”), offers a thoughtful and poignant exploration of themes such as loneliness, desire and emotional vulnerability. Based on Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novella of the same name, it transports the tale from 19th-century St. Petersburg to a dreamy mid-20th-century Italian setting. While Visconti remains largely faithful to Dostoevsky’s narrative, his characteristic style infuses the film with emotional depth, striking visuals, and a focus on class and societal constraints. The story follows a young man named Matteo, played by Marcello Mastroianni, who lives a solitary life in a small Italian town. One evening, he encounters a beautiful young woman named Natalia, portrayed by Austrian-Swiss actress Maria Schell, who is also feeling isolated. Although she is initially reluctant, Natalia eventually confides in Matteo about her love for a man who has promised to return and marry her, but he ha...

Pierfrancesco Favino on his Portrayal of Tommaso Buscetta

Actor Pierfrancesco Favino is no stranger to American audiences. In addition to the Italian blockbusters that have made it to our shores, including Gabriele Muccino’s The Last Kiss , Roberto Ando’s The Confessions , and Ferzan Ozpetek’s Saturn in Opposition , he’s had significant parts in numerous American productions. Among them are Ron Howard’s Angels and Demons , Spike Lee’s Miracle at St. Anna and a stint as Christopher Columbus in Night at the Museum . He even gave us a tour of Rome via his Vespa for CBS This Morning during the papal conclave of 2013. In every character that he becomes, Favino brings his signature humility and grace making his characters vulnerable yet strong in their convictions and above all, unforgettable. His latest film made its American premiere at the 57thNew York Film Festival in October and is Italy’s entry for the Academy Awards. Directed by Marco Bellocchio Il Traditore (The Traitor...

The Sweetness and Genius of Giulietta Masina

Fellini and Masina on the set of "La Strada" As open-hearted and sunny as Federico Fellini was dark and complex, they were perfect counterpoints during a half-century of marriage and professional collaboration. Nicknamed a “female Chaplin” and described by Chaplin himself as the actress who moved him most, Giulietta Masina confronted the tragedy of her characters with an eternal innocence and enthusiasm that gave Italians hope in the most challenging of times. Born in 1921 in San Giorgio di Piano, a commune north of Bologna, Masina was the oldest of four children born to a father who was a music professor and violinist and a mother who was a grade-school teacher. Her parents sent her as a child to live in Rome with her widowed aunt while she attended school there. As Masina took an early interest in gymnastics, her aunt saw in her a passion for performing and encouraged her to pursue acting. So after high school, Masina attended Rome’s La...

Toni Servillo: Master of His Craft

Named by Vogue Italy as the most versatile performer in the history of Italian cinema, Toni Servillo has earned a reputation as a masterful character actor who hauntingly transforms himself into dark, troubled protagonists indifferent to the dubious methods they employ to get what they want. Born in 1958 in Afragola, a town in the province of Naples, Servillo began his acting career on stage during the 1970s, founding Teatro Studio in Caserta and participating in a number of productions in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Influenced by Eduardo De Filippo, he interpreted several of the legendary actor and playwright’s roles and writings. Servillo made his feature film debut in Mario Martone’s 1992 “Morte di un matematico napoletano” (Death of a Neapolitan Mathematician) and appeared in Martone’s follow-up projects: the 1993 “Rasoi,” the 1997 “I vesuviani” (The Vesuvians) and the 1998 “Teatro di guerra” (Rehearsals for War). He was tapped by Paolo Sorrentino to play a starring...

The Life and Work of Monica Bellucci

Monica Bellucci as Malèna Born in Umbria in 1964, Monica Bellucci is one of the most recognizable faces of international cinema. But she didn't always have her sights set on the spotlight. She went to college to study law and modeled to pay her tuition. Her success in the fashion world coupled with the offers that were pouring in to appear on the big screen eventually took over, changing her fate. Bellucci made her on-screen debut in the 1990 television movie, " Vita coi figli." Just two years later, she scored her first American role in Francis Ford Coppola's "Dracula." In addition to her native language, she speaks fluent English and French, which has made for a smooth transition from Italian to international cinema. Stateside, she has acted in blockbusters such as "The Matrix-Reloaded," " The Passion of the Christ" and " The Sorcerer's Apprentice." She has also appeared in several French films, a...

Italian Cinema Today

Search This Blog