The Complex Characters of Luca Marinelli

Photo by Siebbi

His intense dramatic performances have earned him a spot as one of contemporary Italian cinema’s top leading men.

Born in 1984, Luca Marinelli was no stranger to cinema when he enrolled in the Rome drama school Silvio d’Amico National Academy of Dramatic Art. His father, Eugenio Marinelli, is an actor and noted voiceover artist, having interpreted the likes of John Goodman, Gene Wilder and Ving Rhames for Italian audiences.

Marinelli graduated from film school in 2009 and hit the ground running as a lead actor. His breakout role was his very first in a feature film, Saverio Costanzo’s 2010 drama “La solitudine dei numeri primi” (The Solitude of Prime Numbers). Three years later, he was named a Shooting Star at the 2013 Berlin International Film Festival for his role in Paolo Virzì’s “Tutti i santi giorni” (Every Blessed Day). That same year, he had a small role as the tormented Andrea in Paolo Sorrentino’s Academy Award-winning “La grande bellezza” (The Great Beauty). He has also appeared in productions on this side of the Atlantic, including FX’s 2015 “Trust” and Netflix’s 2020 “The Old Guard.”

In 2016, he was awarded a Nastro d’Argento and David di Donatello for best supporting actor for his role in Gabriele Mainetti’s action-packed thriller “Lo chiamavano Jeeg Robot” (They Call Me Jeeg Robot). A classic tale of good guys versus bad guys, the film starts with a chase through the streets of Rome that leads to the banks of the Tiber River, where thief Enzo Ceccotti (Claudio Santamaria) jumps into the water to hide from the police. While submerged, he is exposed to radioactive materials that give him superhuman strength leading to his decision to change his life and start doing good. Marinelli plays Fabio Cannizzaro, nicknamed “The Gypsy,” a detestable gangster who longs for notoriety. Envious of the fame Enzo has achieved, he does everything in his power to destroy him, setting the stage for an amazing brawl and chill-inducing finale.

In 2017, Marinelli teamed up with Toni Servillo for Francesco Amato’s comedy “Lasciati andare” (Let Yourself Go!). The film opens with Marinelli’s character, Ettore, hiding stolen jewels in a field when suddenly the police close in on him. Next unfolds the story of Elia (Servillo), a stingy psychoanalyst whose health is on the decline. After being advised by his doctor to join a gym, he meets an energetic personal trainer and inadvertently becomes involved in her drama. Ettore resurfaces as her love interest, forcing Elia at gunpoint to hypnotize him to help him recall where he buried the jewels. Marinelli is hilarious in his unhinged but touching portrayal of an innocent kid gone bad due to traumatic events in his childhood.

Two years later, he played another tortured soul in Valerio Mieli’s “Ricordi?” (Remember?). The film follows a nameless couple played by Marinelli and Linda Caridi who recall the ups and downs of their relationship. Marinelli’s character is haunted by events that happened during his childhood and adolescence, so he has a darker view of the world, whereas Caridi’s character is more joyful and lighthearted. The film’s stunning cinematography and mystical locations, like Bomarzo’s famous Park of the Monsters, sets the stage for a dreamy journey through the past and present.

Marinelli received international praise for his performance in the title role of Pietro Marcello’s 2019 “Martin Eden.” Adapted from the novel by Jack London, the movie tracks an unskilled laborer who falls in love with Elena, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. To overcome feeling inferior in Elena’s upper-class world, he pursues his dreams of becoming a writer, hoping it will help him rise above his humble origins. The steps he takes to achieving his goals change his perspective, and he experiences a political awakening. The film premiered at the 76th Venice International Film Festival, where Marinelli was awarded the Volpi Cup for best actor.

Marinelli’s latest film, “Le otto montagne” (The Eight Mountains), was released this year and is currently on the international film festival circuit. All of the aforementioned films are available to stream on Amazon. Click on the titles for direct links.

Written by Jeannine Guilyard for the December, 2022 edition of Fra Noi Magazine. Click here to subscribe.

Comments

The Anthology Film Archives Presents: The Italian Connection: Poliziotteschi and Other Italo-Crime Films of the 1960s and '70's

June 19 – June 29 Influenced both by 1960s political cinema and Italian crime novels, as well as by French noir and American cop movies like "Dirty Harry" and "The French Connection," many Italian filmmakers in the late-60s and early-70s gradually moved away from the spaghetti western genre, trading lone cowboys for ‘bad’ cops and the rough frontier of the American west for the mean streets of modern Italy. Just as they had with their westerns, they reinvented the borrowed genre with their inimitable eye for style and filled their stories with the kidnappings, heists, vigilante justice, and brutal violence that suffused this turbulent moment in post-boom 1970s Italy. The undercurrent of fatalism and cynicism in these uncompromising movies is eerily reminiscent of the state of discontent in Italy today. ‘The Italian Connection’ showcases the diversity and innovation found in the genre, from the gangster noir of Fernando Di Leo’s "Caliber 9" ...

Ornella Muti: Five decades of Acting and Still Going Strong

Ornella Muti was born Francesca Romana Rivelli in Rome in 1955 to a Neapolitan father and an Estonian mother. She began her career as a model during her teenage years and made her film debut in 1970 with “La Moglie più bella” (The Most Beautiful Wife). Her follow-up role was in the 1971 film, “Sole nella pelle” (Sun on the Skin), in which she played the daughter of wealthy parents who runs off with a hippie they don’t approve of. The film offers a telling journey through Italian society in the seventies, with its political climate, breathtaking seaside, and the styles and cars of that time. Much of the film is set amid the sunny Italian seaside and captures the innocence and beauty of first love. Muti made her American film debut in 1980 with "Flash Gordon." She played the role of Princess Aura. She’s appeared in two other American films, including “Oscar,” directed by John Landis and starring Don Ameche, Chazz Palminteri, and Sylvester Stallone. In 1992, she w...

Alessandro Gassmann: Born to Act

Alessandro Gassmannin his directorial debut "Razzabastarda" Alessandro Gassmann is the son of the iconic Italian actor/director Vittorio Gassman and French actress Juliette Mayniel. He was born in 1965 and grew up around cinema royalty. He made his cinema debut in 1982 at the age of 17 in his father's autobiographical film, "Di padre in figlio." He went on to study his craft under his father's direction at the Theatre Workshop of Florence. Vittorio Gassman was very active in theater and seemed just as comfortable on stage as he did in front of the camera. Known for his powerful interpretations of Dante's "Inferno" and "Paradiso," it is no surprise that he nurtured his son's acting aspirations on stage before he launched his career in television and film. One of Gassmann's strong qualities, which he undoubtedly inherited from his father is his incredible range and ease in going from genre to genre. He can play ...

Federico Fellini: A Look into the Life and Career of an Icon

A Fellini family portrait “The term became a common word to describe something on the surface you can say is bizarre or strange, but actually is really like a painter working on a film,” said Martin Scorsese when asked to define “Felliniesque,” an adjective inspired by one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. The oldest of three children, Federico Fellini was born in the seaside town of Rimini in 1920. His father was a traveling salesman, so his mother was left to do the bulk of raising the children. One can argue that Fellini was born for his destiny. “You could tell that even as a child, he was different and unique. He was very intelligent, well above average. He was always the one to organize things, direct the others, make up games. He could control the other kids with just a look, said Fellini’s sister, Maddalena, in an interview with journalist Gideon Bachmann. Not only was Fellini directing the children, but he was also putting on shows and charging ...

The Timeless Vision of Pier Paolo Pasolini

Pondering his films and poetry, I wonder if the uniqueness of Pier Paolo Pasolini's films was rooted in his unconventional childhood. Born in Bologna in 1922, Pasolini's father was a lieutenant in the army, and his family was always moving. He grew up in various small towns in Northern Italy. After his parents separated, he spent most of his time in his mother's hometown of Casarsa, in the region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. There, he grew to respect the area's peasant culture and began to write poetry in the region's dialect. He studied literature and art history at the University of Bologna and was drafted into the army during World War II. The war proved to be especially tragic for his family as his younger brother was executed by Communist partisans. Following the war, he returned to Casarsa where he worked as a teacher and ironically became a leading member of the Communist party there. Pasolini was later expelled from the party due to allegations of homo...

Italian Cinema Today

Search This Blog