Italian Cinema Today

In a moving story that spans several decades, “The Macaluso Sisters” follows five orphaned sisters born and raised in an apartment on Palermo’s outskirts. They support themselves by renting out pigeons for events, a unique and symbolic business that reflects their resourcefulness and the transient nature of their lives. Directed by Emma Dante, who adapted the script from her 2014 play of the same name, the film boasts an all-female cast that brings a unique power to the story. It unfolds in three chapters that show how the tragic events of one day haunt the sisters through childhood, adulthood and old age.   The first chapter reveals the tragedy of the youngest sister, Antonella, who dies during a beach outing. She remains a permanent presence in the household, never aging. The film returns again and again to the beauty of the day at the beach when tragedy struck. The apartment is a central character, housing the memories and rage each sister carries inside her. This exploration of...

Production has begun on the  follow up to  Emma Dante's debut feature   Via Castellana Bandiera (A Street in Palermo).  Le  sorelle  Macaluso ( The Macaluso Sisters) is the story of a matriarchal family of five siblings from childhood through old age. Set in Palermo, the film will follow each of the sisters through the choices that set the course of their lives. Le sorelle Macaluso stars Alissa Maria Orlando, Susanna Piraino, Anita Pomario, Eleonora De Luca, Viola Pusatieri, Donatella Finocchiaro, Serena Barone, Simona Malato, Laura Giordani, Maria Rosaria Alati, Rosalba Bologna and Ileana Rigano. T he film will be released in Italian theatres in 2020.

Antonio Albanese and Gianni Amelio, Photo by Claudio Iannone For the first time ever, the Italian films screened at the Venice International Film Festival will be featured in a film series in Beirut, Lebanon. The film event “Venezia Cinema a Beirut,”organized by the Biennale di Venezia with the Italian Institute of Culture in Lebanon, will run from February 20 through February 25, 2014. According to Labiennale.org, four Italian films from the Official Selection of the 70th Venice Film Festival will be presented at the Metropolis Empire Sofil – Acharafieh in Beirut. The event will open with "L’intrepido" by Gianni Amelio . The following day, audiences will be treated to Emma Dante 's "Via Castellana Bandiera" with the star Elena Cotta, winner of the Coppa Volpi for Best Actress, on hand for a discussion. Monday's screening on February 24th will feature "La prima neve" by Andrea Segre, and the closing film will be the Golden Lion winner, ...

Italian director, Emma Dante recently won the Ingmar Bergman International Debut Award at the 37th Göteborg Festival for her film, "Via Castellana Bandiera" (A Street in Palermo). Dante costars in the film alongside Alba Rohrwacher and Elena Cotta.  The story follows two women who are shut inside their cars in a silent duel on Via Castellana Bandiera, a narrow side street in Palermo. The two women who were each driving in opposite directions meet accidentally on this one-lane street. One of them must back out of the street to let the other through, but the stubborn women refuse to give way to each other. Regardless of the hot Palermo sun or the short-tempered men surrounding the cars, neither of these women will budge, even resisting food, water and sleep.   The unique plot and top notch performances have made this film a festival hit all over the world, earning its share of awards along the way. Watch a clip..