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Showing posts from February, 2021

Olive Harvesting in Calabria- Life Imitates Art

Ciccio's Olive Groves In this week’s edition of Cibo & Cinema, a look at olive harvesting in Calabria with one of my favorite short films- Luigi Di Gianni’s 1967 “Tempo di Raccolta,” which documents a day in the life of Calabrese women as they work in the olive groves of the region.  The simple yet stunning beauty of those majestic trees, Di Gianni’s choice of traditional music, and the play of sun and shadow during autumn days turn the film into a visual and aural symphony. The generations of women working together, with the older ones filling the baskets and the younger ones lifting them atop their heads and carrying them off, present a picture of contentment. I talked with Pennsylvania-based, Calabrese olive oil producer Giuseppe “Pino” Pugliano who co-founded Ciccio's Olives with his wife, Laura. Their family farm is located in Vena di Máida, which is located in the province of Catanzaro. He told me about the modernization of harvesting olives and how the process has c

From the Golden Age to Contemporary Italian Cinema, Sophia Loren Still Reigns

After nearly a decade away from the spotlight, Sophia Loren has returned to the screen in a film directed by her son Edoardo Ponti. Now available on Netflix, “La vita davanti a sé” (The Life Ahead) is based on French writer Romain Gary’s novel “The Life Before Us.” Ponti co-wrote the screenplay with veteran screenwriter Ugo Chiti, whose recent credits include Matteo Garrone’s “Dogman” and “Gomorrah.” Loren gives a heartfelt performance as Madame Rosa, a survivor of Auschwitz and former prostitute who cares for the children of her fellow sex workers.   The film opens with Madame Rosa shopping at an open-air market when a young boy runs up from behind her and steals her purse. When a longtime friend, played by Renato Carpentieri , pleads with her to be a foster parent for the very same boy — a Senegalese orphan named Momo — she at first refuses but then reconsiders because she desperately needs the stipend being offered for his care.   Momo and Madame Rosa clash at first, but he begins t

Celebrate Giulietta Masina's 100th Birthday with a Walking Tour of Rome

Last year, we celebrated the centennials of Alberto Sordi , Federico Fellini and Franca Valeri . This year, it's Giulietta Masina's turn to shine.  Born on February 22, 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 Sapienza University where she was active in the theater program during the 1941-1942 school year.  In 1943, Masina landed the female lead in “Terzoglio,” a radio show about the adventures of newlyweds Cico and Pallina. The scripts were written by Fellini. Not only did she achieve popularity with the show, she married Fellini. The show laste

Comedy Groundbreaker Franca Valeri

Comedic pioneer Franca Valeri was born Alma Franca Maria Norsa in Milan in 1920 to a Jewish father and non-Jewish mother. Forced to hide her religious identity during World War II, she turned personal sorrow into cinematic triumph in the decades to come. In 1949, she founded Teatro dei Gobbi with fellow actors Luciano Salce and future husband Vittorio Caprioli. The trio invented a comedic performance style that focused on speed and timing. Unsure of how this new formula would be received in Italy, they decided to make their debut in Paris. “Italy is always a little scary to those who want to invent something new. It is always a bit hostile, a bit mocking,” Valeri told Rai Cultura. “Since the guys had already done a little experiment in Paris with the Piccolo Teatro di Milano, we decided to debut in Montmartre and had an incredible success.”   When work began to pick up, she adopted the stage name Franca Valeri because her father didn’t approve of a life in show business. She was inspir

Spaghetti, aglio, olio, peperoncino with Alberto Sordi

Last Sunday we launched the eighth edition of our winter series Cinema & Cibo with an update from our first edition in 2014, a film shown that year at the Berlin Film Fest that has recently been made available online by Cineteca di Bologna. Click here for the story.  In this week’s edition,  a fun, quick recipe for a classic Roman dish and some recollections of the great Roman actor  Alberto Sordi . This interview took place in the mid-late 1990s. In this clip, he talks about how he and his actor friends didn’t have much money in the early days, so they just ate once a day and it was always prior to a performance to build up strength. During the interview, the host was insisting on talking about the beautiful women with whom he shared the screen and he seemed bashful about it, almost uncomfortable, saying that he never kissed on-screen and wouldn’t divulge the off-screen romances of his youth. Although he seems a little tired, I enjoyed this interview because his subtle sense of h

Italian Biblical Movies to Watch During Lent

Join me in beginning the Lenten season with my favorite adaptation of one of the Gospels-  Pier Paolo Pasolini's  1964 “Il Vangolo Secondo Matteo" (The Gospel According to St. Matthew) and a few classics that I recently discovered.  Considered by the Vatican to be among the best film adaptations of the Gospels, Pasolini's film was shot in the regions of Basilicata and Calabria. He cast his mother as Mary and many locals as extras. Spanish actor Enrique Irazoqui was cast in the role of Jesus. He was just 18-years-old when he landed the part. He had been in Rome at the time of casting and auditioned for the role. I contacted Irazoqui around this time last year to ask him about his experience making the film. He suggested that we have a conversation via Skype. Although the connection wasn’t very good, it was thrilling to talk directly with this actor whose film I had been watching for at least 20 years. He was very friendly and nostalgic in his recollections especially abou