Italian Cinema Today

He's an intense, articulate actor with dozens of diverse roles to his credit, and his latest film, Perfetti Sconosciuti (Perfect Strangers) is set to make its North American premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. Roman-born actor, Marco Giallini shines in the roles he takes on, whether he is the oddball in a comedy, the sexy mystery man in a drama or the bad guy you’d love to hate in a thriller.   In each case, Giallini reels us into his character’s fascinating world with his impressive range of performing. Born in Rome in 1963, Giallini grew up with a number of interests including music, motorcycles and soccer. Before he discovered his call to act, he explored his passion for music, starting his own band in the early 80’s called, I Monitors. Then in 1985, destiny knocked at his door, and Giallini enrolled in acting school. He studied theater and for nearly a decade, participated in local productions in Rome’s many venues. It was in 1995 that h...

The Toronto International Film Festival is wrapping up its retrospective of the cinematic collaboration of husband and wife team, Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni. Over the last few days, the couple have participated in discussions, Q & A sessions and have introduced several of their films. Today, I attended a screening of "La voce della luna" (The voice of the moon). It was  Federico Fellini's last film and is a wonderful tribute to the director's signature poetic madness. The film gave Benigni the opportunity to team up with fellow beloved comic, Paolo Villaggio, and the two created a truly unforgettable adventure. Today's screening began with an introduction by Benigni. The moments leading up to his introduction were noticeably serious and somewhat tense. Benigni's publicist and TIFF security staunchly guarded his privacy. There was no interaction and no photos were allowed. Guided by ...

"Ci mancherai tanto, Massimo" - "We will miss you so much, Massimo" is the headline on one of the many websites dedicated to the memory of the great Italian screen comic Massimo Troisi. Born in San Giorgio a Cremano, outside Naples, Troisi became involved in theater, co-founding with friends Lello Arena and Enzo Decaro the comedy troupe I Saraceni at just 17-years-old. Within a few years, the troupe, later re-named La Smorfia, became so well known, they were invited to appear on various national TV variety shows. In 1981, Troisi co-wrote, directed, and starred in his first feature film, the hugely popular "Ricomincio da tre" (I'm Starting from Three) and a new style of Italian comedy was launched. The story follows the dark-eyed, handsome Troisi. As he exuded an extraordinary sense of innocence on screen, there was a relaxed quality to his work on this film- the absolute opposite of the style of his close friend and fellow comic Roberto Be...