Comandante.Beyond the Venice Film Festival's habitual paucity of female filmmakers, the most striking aspect of this year’s lineup was its astounding number of biopics. Granted, the genre has always been a staple of the fest, which under artistic director Alberto Barbera has effectively metastasized into a launchpad for Hollywood’s awards race. But the inclusion of so many in its eightieth edition was nonetheless remarkable. The official competition alone was home to six—among them big studio projects like Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, Bradley Cooper’s Maestro, Michael Mann’s Ferrari—to say nothing of all those slotted in the parallel sidebars, from Quentin Dupieux’s fittingly surrealist Daaaaaali! to Neo Sora’s Ryuichi Sakamoto—Opus. Beyond the industry’s flirtations with the genre for its bona fide commercial potential, what accounts for our ongoing fascination with biopics is perhaps their promises of identification and revelation: in charting the lives of extraordinary figures,...
- 9/5/2023
- MUBI
Inaugurating this year’s Venice Film Festival, Edoardo De Angelis’ Italian war drama “Comandante” certainly makes for an improbable fall-season kickoff – filling a prime, opening-night slot often reserved for glitzy global titles on the U.S. awards hunt in lieu of sturdy local productions with limited crossover appeal. But then we do find ourselves at an equally improbable moment, as the ongoing strikes promise a fall corridor rife with uncertainty, lit by lower star-wattage and met with another round of on-the-fly problem solving from harried festival organizers.
Given this once-again shaky terrain — goodbye original opener “Challengers,” from Luca Guadagnino — the fact that Venice lost just one major title might be the most surprising outcome of all, although this opening spotlight’s harsher and more intense glare does “Comandante” few favors. Welding the star-power of the country’s leading man Pierfrancesco Favino (“The Traitor”) to the familiar comforts of real-life WW2 heroism,...
Given this once-again shaky terrain — goodbye original opener “Challengers,” from Luca Guadagnino — the fact that Venice lost just one major title might be the most surprising outcome of all, although this opening spotlight’s harsher and more intense glare does “Comandante” few favors. Welding the star-power of the country’s leading man Pierfrancesco Favino (“The Traitor”) to the familiar comforts of real-life WW2 heroism,...
- 8/30/2023
- by Ben Croll
- The Wrap
And the Sea Will Tell: De Angelis Sells the Soft Side of Fascism
Napolitano director Edoardo De Angelis embarks on his most lavish offering to date with Comandante, a period piece reflecting a decisive week in the life of Italian Naval officer Salvatore Todaro during WWII in which he did the inexplicable – risked his own life and crew to save the survivors of a ‘neutral’ ship he sank. Playing partially like a propaganda film commissioned for Terrence Malick, a poetic screenplay (co-written by Sandro Veronesi) allows for narration serving as interiority in ways which are often enriching but sometimes schmaltzy.…...
Napolitano director Edoardo De Angelis embarks on his most lavish offering to date with Comandante, a period piece reflecting a decisive week in the life of Italian Naval officer Salvatore Todaro during WWII in which he did the inexplicable – risked his own life and crew to save the survivors of a ‘neutral’ ship he sank. Playing partially like a propaganda film commissioned for Terrence Malick, a poetic screenplay (co-written by Sandro Veronesi) allows for narration serving as interiority in ways which are often enriching but sometimes schmaltzy.…...
- 8/30/2023
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
Rome-based sales agency True Colours has added Edoardo de Angelis’ “Comandante,” which opens the Venice Film Festival, to its slate. The film, which plays in the main competition section, stars Pierfrancesco Favino.
“Comandante” is based on the true story of Italian submarine commander Salvatore Todaro and the events that occurred in October 1940, when Todaro was in command of the Italian Royal Navy submarine Cappellini.
One night, while navigating in the Atlantic, the Italian vessel sinks an armed Belgian merchant ship, and Todaro decides to take the 26 shipwrecked crew members on board his already crowded submarine, aiming for the nearest safe harbor to release them. It is an unexpected action in the context of war, but follows the law of the sea, and endangers his life as well as that of his men, since the submarine has to navigate on the surface of the water for three days, visible to the enemy forces.
“Comandante” is based on the true story of Italian submarine commander Salvatore Todaro and the events that occurred in October 1940, when Todaro was in command of the Italian Royal Navy submarine Cappellini.
One night, while navigating in the Atlantic, the Italian vessel sinks an armed Belgian merchant ship, and Todaro decides to take the 26 shipwrecked crew members on board his already crowded submarine, aiming for the nearest safe harbor to release them. It is an unexpected action in the context of war, but follows the law of the sea, and endangers his life as well as that of his men, since the submarine has to navigate on the surface of the water for three days, visible to the enemy forces.
- 8/10/2023
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Francesca Archibugi on Paolo Virzì: “We actually were students together. We studied with Furio Scarpelli, who was a great screenwriter. I think we both loved him very much.” Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
As a screenwriter, Francesca Archibugi has worked with director/screenwriter Paolo Virzì on his films Magical Nights (Notti Magiche) and The Leisure Seeker (starring Helen Mirren and Donald Sutherland) with Francesco Piccolo. Dry (Siccità) starring Monica Bellucci, Silvio Orlando, Valerio Mastandrea, Vinicio Marchioni, Claudia Pandolfi, Sara Serraiocco, and Tommaso Ragno is Archibugi’s third collaboration with Paolo Virzì, this time also with screenwriters Paolo Giordano and Francesco Piccolo.
Dry star Tommaso Ragno inside the Walter Reade Theater, Lincoln Center Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Piccolo is also the co-writer with Laura Paolucci on Archibugi’s The Hummingbird which was the opening night selection of Cinecittà and Film at Lincoln Center’s...
As a screenwriter, Francesca Archibugi has worked with director/screenwriter Paolo Virzì on his films Magical Nights (Notti Magiche) and The Leisure Seeker (starring Helen Mirren and Donald Sutherland) with Francesco Piccolo. Dry (Siccità) starring Monica Bellucci, Silvio Orlando, Valerio Mastandrea, Vinicio Marchioni, Claudia Pandolfi, Sara Serraiocco, and Tommaso Ragno is Archibugi’s third collaboration with Paolo Virzì, this time also with screenwriters Paolo Giordano and Francesco Piccolo.
Dry star Tommaso Ragno inside the Walter Reade Theater, Lincoln Center Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze
Piccolo is also the co-writer with Laura Paolucci on Archibugi’s The Hummingbird which was the opening night selection of Cinecittà and Film at Lincoln Center’s...
- 7/5/2023
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
The Hummingbird (Il Colibrì) director Francesca Archibugi with Anne-Katrin Titze on Dancing Barefoot: “That Patti Smith song is very important to me.” And The Clash’s London Calling: “It does belong to Marco’s (Pierfrancesco Favino) story as a boy …”
Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird with songs from Patti Smith, Billie Holiday, and The Clash, stars Pierfrancesco Favino (in Andrea Di Stefano's The Last Night With Amore at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival), Nanni Moretti, Bérénice Bejo, Laura Morante, Kasia Smutniak, Benedetta Porcaroli, Fotinì Peluso, Azzurra Di Marco, Francesco Centorame, and Sergio Albelli Is the opening night selection of Film at Lincoln Center and Cinecittà’s 22nd edition of Open Roads: New Italian Cinema.
Luisa Lattes (Bérénice Bejo) with Marco Carrera (Pierfrancesco Favino)
Other highlights include Roberto Andò’s Strangeness with Toni Sevillo (Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar-winning The Great Beauty), as Nobel Prize-winning playwright Luigi Pirandello, Salvo Ficarra,...
Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird with songs from Patti Smith, Billie Holiday, and The Clash, stars Pierfrancesco Favino (in Andrea Di Stefano's The Last Night With Amore at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival), Nanni Moretti, Bérénice Bejo, Laura Morante, Kasia Smutniak, Benedetta Porcaroli, Fotinì Peluso, Azzurra Di Marco, Francesco Centorame, and Sergio Albelli Is the opening night selection of Film at Lincoln Center and Cinecittà’s 22nd edition of Open Roads: New Italian Cinema.
Luisa Lattes (Bérénice Bejo) with Marco Carrera (Pierfrancesco Favino)
Other highlights include Roberto Andò’s Strangeness with Toni Sevillo (Paolo Sorrentino’s Oscar-winning The Great Beauty), as Nobel Prize-winning playwright Luigi Pirandello, Salvo Ficarra,...
- 5/29/2023
- by Anne-Katrin Titze
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Italian A-list actor Pierfrancesco Favino, who just scored a European Film Award nomination for his role in “Nostalgia,” is set to play heroic Sicilian World War II naval officer Salvatore Todaro in “Comandante.” Directed by rising auteur Edoardo De Angelis, the film is an ambitious anti-war epic that has required the construction of a life-size steel submarine.
Belgian multihyphenate Johan Heldenbergh, who wrote and starred in “The Broken Circle Breakdown,” plays the captain of an enemy ship.
Cameras have started rolling in the southern port city of Taranto on this meticulous reconstruction of an act of wartime humanitarianism that has gone down in naval history annals. It took place in the Atlantic Ocean on Oct. 15, 1940, when Todaro as commander of the submarine Cappellini sank a Belgian merchant ship called Kabalo that was carrying aircraft parts and operating under British rule.
He then surfaced, disobeying orders from his own command, to...
Belgian multihyphenate Johan Heldenbergh, who wrote and starred in “The Broken Circle Breakdown,” plays the captain of an enemy ship.
Cameras have started rolling in the southern port city of Taranto on this meticulous reconstruction of an act of wartime humanitarianism that has gone down in naval history annals. It took place in the Atlantic Ocean on Oct. 15, 1940, when Todaro as commander of the submarine Cappellini sank a Belgian merchant ship called Kabalo that was carrying aircraft parts and operating under British rule.
He then surfaced, disobeying orders from his own command, to...
- 11/10/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
It is the first edition under artistic director Paola Malanga.
Paola Malanga, the new artistic director of the Rome Film Festival has unveiled the line-up for the 2022 edition, taking place from October 13-23.
The international competition will showcase 16 titles including Lila Neugebauer’s Causeway, starring Jennifer Lawrence, Mounia Meddour’s Houria and Firam Khoury’s Alam and Wang Xiaoshuai’s The Hotel.
Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird, starring Pierfrancesco Favino, Bérénice Bejo, Nanni Moretti and Laura Morante will open the festival out of competition, fresh from its world premiere at Toronto and just ahead of its Italian release on October...
Paola Malanga, the new artistic director of the Rome Film Festival has unveiled the line-up for the 2022 edition, taking place from October 13-23.
The international competition will showcase 16 titles including Lila Neugebauer’s Causeway, starring Jennifer Lawrence, Mounia Meddour’s Houria and Firam Khoury’s Alam and Wang Xiaoshuai’s The Hotel.
Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird, starring Pierfrancesco Favino, Bérénice Bejo, Nanni Moretti and Laura Morante will open the festival out of competition, fresh from its world premiere at Toronto and just ahead of its Italian release on October...
- 9/22/2022
- by Alina Trabattoni
- ScreenDaily
The 17th annual Rome Film Festival will fete James Ivory with a career honor, a mini retrospective and the Italian launch of the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s personal new documentary “A Cooler Climate.”
Ivory is expected in Rome to receive the award and present the doc about his life as a traveler that takes its cue from boxes of film the director shot during a life-changing trip to Afghanistan in 1960. The film premieres beforehand at the New York Film Festival.
Rome’s Ivory mini-retrospective will comprise his films “Maurice”; “Mr. and Mrs. Bridge,” starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward; “The Remains of the Day”; and “A Room With a View.”
The Rome fest – which has undergone a management change and is now headed by former Rai Cinema executive Paola Malanga as artistic director and Gian Luca Farinelli as president – on Thursday unveiled a mixed bag lineup comprising a competitive section largely made up of first works,...
Ivory is expected in Rome to receive the award and present the doc about his life as a traveler that takes its cue from boxes of film the director shot during a life-changing trip to Afghanistan in 1960. The film premieres beforehand at the New York Film Festival.
Rome’s Ivory mini-retrospective will comprise his films “Maurice”; “Mr. and Mrs. Bridge,” starring Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward; “The Remains of the Day”; and “A Room With a View.”
The Rome fest – which has undergone a management change and is now headed by former Rai Cinema executive Paola Malanga as artistic director and Gian Luca Farinelli as president – on Thursday unveiled a mixed bag lineup comprising a competitive section largely made up of first works,...
- 9/22/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Time-jumping drama’s cast includes Nanni Moretti, Berenice Bejo and Pierfrancesco Favino.
Italy’s Fandango Sales has secured further deals for Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird (Il Colibri), selling it to territories including Portugal, Latin America and Austria.
The Hummingbird has sold to Outsider Films in Portugal, Strada Films in Greece, Filmladen in Austria. Fidalgo has acquired the film for Norway and Impacto Cine for Latin America.
The Hummingbird is a time-jumping drama that follows the life of protagonist Marco Carrera (Pierfrancesco Favino) from the 70s into the near future, while analysing the many relationships built up during his life journey.
Italy’s Fandango Sales has secured further deals for Francesca Archibugi’s The Hummingbird (Il Colibri), selling it to territories including Portugal, Latin America and Austria.
The Hummingbird has sold to Outsider Films in Portugal, Strada Films in Greece, Filmladen in Austria. Fidalgo has acquired the film for Norway and Impacto Cine for Latin America.
The Hummingbird is a time-jumping drama that follows the life of protagonist Marco Carrera (Pierfrancesco Favino) from the 70s into the near future, while analysing the many relationships built up during his life journey.
- 6/23/2022
- by Alina Trabattoni
- ScreenDaily
In spite of a disastrous box office situation, the Italian film industry is staying buoyant thanks to increased exports, a friendly rapport with streaming giants and support from the government of Prime Minister Mario Draghi that is pumping money into a revamp of Rome’s Cinecittà Studios.
“Production never stopped and ailing movie theaters have been able to get subsidies,” says Francesco Rutelli, the former Rome mayor who heads Italy’s motion picture association, Anica. The org recently broadened its member base to include executives from Amazon Prime Video, Disney and ViacomCBS, after Netflix had joined.
This move — which is unique in Europe — indicates the level of friendly dialogue between film producers and streaming platforms in Italy, best encapsulated by Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Hand of God,” Italy’s international Oscar nominee. Sorrentino’s Netflix original film was released theatrically in November across the country before dropping on the platform...
“Production never stopped and ailing movie theaters have been able to get subsidies,” says Francesco Rutelli, the former Rome mayor who heads Italy’s motion picture association, Anica. The org recently broadened its member base to include executives from Amazon Prime Video, Disney and ViacomCBS, after Netflix had joined.
This move — which is unique in Europe — indicates the level of friendly dialogue between film producers and streaming platforms in Italy, best encapsulated by Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Hand of God,” Italy’s international Oscar nominee. Sorrentino’s Netflix original film was released theatrically in November across the country before dropping on the platform...
- 2/13/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Samuel Goldwyn Films has acquired all U.S. rights to Pan Nalin’s (“Samsara”) India-set tale “Last Film Show” which world premiered at Tribeca last month. The film is represented in international markets by Orange Studio.
The movie follows Samay, a 9-year-old boy living with his family in a remote village in India. One day, he discovers films and is instantly mesmerized. Against his father’s wishes, he returns to the cinema day after day and sets off to become a filmmaker at all costs.
Daniel Marquet, Orange Studio’s head of international sales, said the film has lured distributors around the world.
Deals were closed for Czech Republic (Slovakia Bohemia Motion Picture), Russia/Cis (Capella), Spain (Karma Films), Italy, Germany and Austria (Neuevisionen), Portugal (Nos Lusomundo), Israel (Red Cape / Nachson), Turkey (Filmarti) and Japan (Shochiku). Orange Studio will handle the release in France.
“‘Last Film Show’ is a love...
The movie follows Samay, a 9-year-old boy living with his family in a remote village in India. One day, he discovers films and is instantly mesmerized. Against his father’s wishes, he returns to the cinema day after day and sets off to become a filmmaker at all costs.
Daniel Marquet, Orange Studio’s head of international sales, said the film has lured distributors around the world.
Deals were closed for Czech Republic (Slovakia Bohemia Motion Picture), Russia/Cis (Capella), Spain (Karma Films), Italy, Germany and Austria (Neuevisionen), Portugal (Nos Lusomundo), Israel (Red Cape / Nachson), Turkey (Filmarti) and Japan (Shochiku). Orange Studio will handle the release in France.
“‘Last Film Show’ is a love...
- 7/14/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy and Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Drama is adapted from Sandro Veronesi’s 2019 bestseller Il Colibrì (The Hummingbird).
France’s Orange Studio has boarded Francesca Archibugi’s new feature Il Colibrì which is currently shooting in Tuscany with Pierfrancesco Favino, Bérénice Bejo, Nanni Moretti and Laura Morante in the cast.
The company, which is the film and TV arm of French telecoms group Orange, has joined the production in association with Anne-Dominique Toussaint at Paris-based Les Films des Tournelles. It has taken all rights for France.
The film is lead-produced by Domenico Procacci at Fandango, with Rai Cinema. Fandango Sales is handling international sales.
The feature has been adapted by Archibugi,...
France’s Orange Studio has boarded Francesca Archibugi’s new feature Il Colibrì which is currently shooting in Tuscany with Pierfrancesco Favino, Bérénice Bejo, Nanni Moretti and Laura Morante in the cast.
The company, which is the film and TV arm of French telecoms group Orange, has joined the production in association with Anne-Dominique Toussaint at Paris-based Les Films des Tournelles. It has taken all rights for France.
The film is lead-produced by Domenico Procacci at Fandango, with Rai Cinema. Fandango Sales is handling international sales.
The feature has been adapted by Archibugi,...
- 7/11/2021
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Despite Italy having been among countries hardest hit by the pandemic, film production almost never stopped. So there is a backlog of new titles ready to hit global festivals and markets starting from Cannes, as well as newer projects.
Below is a compendium of hot Cinema Italiano titles in various stages of production.
“Bones and All”
Luca Guadagnino started shooting this U.S.-set film in May, marking his first collaboration with Timothée Chalamet since “Call Me by Your Name.” Pic is adapted from the eponymous novel by Camille DeAngelis and tells the story of first love between Maren, a young woman learning how to survive on the margins of society, and Lee, a disenfranchised drifter, as they meet and join forces for a road trip through Ronald Reagan’s America.
“La Chimera”
Alice Rohrwacher will soon shoot her fourth feature revolving around the black market of stolen archaeological artifacts.
Below is a compendium of hot Cinema Italiano titles in various stages of production.
“Bones and All”
Luca Guadagnino started shooting this U.S.-set film in May, marking his first collaboration with Timothée Chalamet since “Call Me by Your Name.” Pic is adapted from the eponymous novel by Camille DeAngelis and tells the story of first love between Maren, a young woman learning how to survive on the margins of society, and Lee, a disenfranchised drifter, as they meet and join forces for a road trip through Ronald Reagan’s America.
“La Chimera”
Alice Rohrwacher will soon shoot her fourth feature revolving around the black market of stolen archaeological artifacts.
- 7/9/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Oscar-nominated French actor Bérénice Bejo (“The Artist”) has joined Pierfrancesco Favino (“The Traitor”), Nanni Moretti, and the Italian cast of romantic drama “Il Colibrì,” which has started shooting in Rome.
Fandango Sales is launching sales at the virtual Cannes market on this high-profile drama directed by Francesca Archibugi (“A Question of the Heart”) based on the eponymous novel by Sandro Veronesi, winner of Italy’s top literary prize, the Premio Strega 2020. The book is now set for translation in 25 countries, including the U.S.
Domenico Procacci’s Fandango, which is producing the €7.85 million ($9.3 million) film with Rai Cinema, has set it up as an Italian-French co-production by teaming up with Anne-Dominique Toussaint Paris-based Les Films des Tournelles. The two companies previously collaborated two decades ago on Emanuele Crialese’s Sicily-set “Respiro,” which in the early aughts made an international splash.
“Colibrì,” which translates literally as “Hummingbird,” is set over several decades.
Fandango Sales is launching sales at the virtual Cannes market on this high-profile drama directed by Francesca Archibugi (“A Question of the Heart”) based on the eponymous novel by Sandro Veronesi, winner of Italy’s top literary prize, the Premio Strega 2020. The book is now set for translation in 25 countries, including the U.S.
Domenico Procacci’s Fandango, which is producing the €7.85 million ($9.3 million) film with Rai Cinema, has set it up as an Italian-French co-production by teaming up with Anne-Dominique Toussaint Paris-based Les Films des Tournelles. The two companies previously collaborated two decades ago on Emanuele Crialese’s Sicily-set “Respiro,” which in the early aughts made an international splash.
“Colibrì,” which translates literally as “Hummingbird,” is set over several decades.
- 6/18/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Italian producer Domenico Procacci, whose Fandango shingle is developing Elena Ferrante’s “The Lying Life of Adults” for Netflix, has several new films in the pipeline, including chiller “Pantafa” toplining Kasia Smutniak (“Devils”) as a strong-willed mother trying to protect her haunted young daughter.
“Pantafa,” which takes its cue from an ancient Italian legend involving an evil spirit that stifles women in their sleep, has just ended principal photography. Pic is directed by Emanuele Scaringi, who has long worked with Fandango in various guises: as writer, creative producer (“Bangla”), and director of graphic novel adaptation “The Armadillo’s Prophecy,” Scaringi’s feature film debut that went to Venice. He also directed TV crime series “L’Alligatore” for Rai.
“Fandango has never made a horror film in 30 years [of our existence] because I’m personally neither a big fan [of this genre] nor an expert,” Procacci tells Variety. But Scarigni “really believed in this project, so I went with it,...
“Pantafa,” which takes its cue from an ancient Italian legend involving an evil spirit that stifles women in their sleep, has just ended principal photography. Pic is directed by Emanuele Scaringi, who has long worked with Fandango in various guises: as writer, creative producer (“Bangla”), and director of graphic novel adaptation “The Armadillo’s Prophecy,” Scaringi’s feature film debut that went to Venice. He also directed TV crime series “L’Alligatore” for Rai.
“Fandango has never made a horror film in 30 years [of our existence] because I’m personally neither a big fan [of this genre] nor an expert,” Procacci tells Variety. But Scarigni “really believed in this project, so I went with it,...
- 3/31/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
The Italian filmmaker will be on set from June, directing Pierfrancesco Favino, Nanni Moretti and Kasia Smutniak in her new movie based upon Sandro Veronesi’s novel of the same name. Pierfrancesco Favino (rewarded at the latest Venice Film Festival for his role in Padrenostro), Nanni Moretti (who is soon to unveil his new film Tre piani) and Kasia Smutniak are starring in the cast of Francesca Archibugi’s new film Il Colibrì, on which filming is scheduled to begin in June, encompassing Rome, Paris, Florence and the Tuscan coast. Auditions are currently underway for the remainder of the cast. The director (who made her name in 1988 with Mignon Has Left, scooping 5 David di Donatello trophies and the New Directors award in San Sebastian, before going on to win a Best Film David di Donatello for Towards Evening in...
Chicago -- "Hunger," a U.K./Ireland film, won the Gold Hugo at the 44th annual Chicago International Film Festival.
Directed by Steve McQueen, the film about a hunger strike in Northern Ireland's Hm Prison Maze in 1981 was singled out by the festival jury Saturday for its "uncompromisingly disturbing story of the courage to fight for one's belief."
The festival, which began Oct. 16, concludes Wednesday.
In the documentary category, a U.S. film, "Valentino: The Last Emperor," won the Gold Hugo. Directed by Matt Tymauer, it is a glimpse into the life of fashion designer Valentino Garavani.
"Tokyo Sonata" (Japan/Netherlands/Hong Kong), directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, won the Grand Jury Prize. The film used the story of a humble family as a metaphor for global anxieties.
Henrik Ruben Genz won a Silver Hugo for direction for "Terribly Happy" (Denmark), a genre mix centering on a Copenhagen policeman who is re-assigned to a provincial town.
Directed by Steve McQueen, the film about a hunger strike in Northern Ireland's Hm Prison Maze in 1981 was singled out by the festival jury Saturday for its "uncompromisingly disturbing story of the courage to fight for one's belief."
The festival, which began Oct. 16, concludes Wednesday.
In the documentary category, a U.S. film, "Valentino: The Last Emperor," won the Gold Hugo. Directed by Matt Tymauer, it is a glimpse into the life of fashion designer Valentino Garavani.
"Tokyo Sonata" (Japan/Netherlands/Hong Kong), directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, won the Grand Jury Prize. The film used the story of a humble family as a metaphor for global anxieties.
Henrik Ruben Genz won a Silver Hugo for direction for "Terribly Happy" (Denmark), a genre mix centering on a Copenhagen policeman who is re-assigned to a provincial town.
- 10/26/2008
- by By Duane Byrge
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Berlin International Film Festival
ROME -- In Quiet Chaos, directed by Antontello Grimaldi (Bits and Pieces) and featuring Italian enfant terrible actor-director Nanni Moretti, what unfolds is a father's love for his 10-year-old daughter as he copes with the unexpected death of his wife. This marks the first time Moretti has starred in a film not directed by him in 13 years.
Quiet Chaos, which recently screened at the Berlin International Film Festival and is playing in Italy, will not disappoint international audiences that have come to appreciate Moretti's trademark irony and growing maturity as an actor. Make no mistake, this is a Moretti vehicle as there are few scenes in which he does not appear.
After a painfully stiff opening, the film slowly but assuredly loses its literary feel -- it was adapted from the eponymous novel by Sandro Veronesi by Moretti, Laura Paolucci and Francesco Piccolo -- to find its pace and heart. In the same moment that media executive Pietro Paladini (Moretti) and his brother Carlo (Alessandro Gassman) save two women from drowning, Pietro's wife dies from a fatal fall. Left alone with his daughter, Claudia (Blu Yoshimi), he worries about her lack of emotion over the loss as well as his own. Neither has broken down since the death, enveloped by a strange calm, and he does not understand why.
Shortly thereafter, on the first day of school, Pietro promises Claudia that he will wait for her in front of the building all day, without moving. He proceeds to do just that. One day turns into two, then a week and eventually months as he sits in a park in front of the school, observing and getting to know the other mothers, neighborhood residents and regular passersby.
His co-workers and family try to persuade him to get a grip on himself and return to work. Slowly, however, they start seeking Pietro not to offer consolation but to get advice. He becomes caught up in a pregnancy, the breakdown of the marriage of the woman he saved and his company's forthcoming merger.
A reluctant guru who wants only to be left alone, Pietro tries to make sense of his feelings and, in an effective use of narrative, creates lists in his head to keep himself occupied such as the airlines he has flown and houses he has lived in throughout his life.
Managing to avoid facile sentimentality, the story grows emotionally more and more engaging thanks to Moretti's impeccable comic timing and neurotic acumen. While we never forget we are watching Moretti, we do see a deeper side to him as his brusque awkwardness finds a perfect outlet here.
Not knowing how to help Claudia, in his own fumbling yet unrelenting way Pietro seems more surprised than anyone to realize that showing his daughter he loves her means offering her trustworthiness and stability, which we are led to believe did not come easily to him before Laura's death.
Moretti makes ample room for the other actors, from Gassman, whose playboy nonchalance is balanced by his deep love for his brother, to Silvio Orlando, who plays Pietro's nebbish colleague. Yoshimi is wonderfully low-key as the precocious yet hard-to-read Claudia. French stars Hippolyte Girardot and Charles Berling also give solid turns in their secondary roles.
Quiet Chaos already has sparked controversy for a sex scene between Moretti and Isabella Ferrari. Certainly not scandalous by European standards, the sequence is difficult to watch because Moretti is often called Italy's Woody Allen and like the American icon has always been known for his woman-crazed yet relatively sexless intellect and comedy. It therefore seems like watching a family member having sex, and rough sex at that, which makes the scene all the more perplexing. At best, it might have been intended to show that his increasing tenderness is truly new to him, but it is in such contrast to the rest of his character that it simply makes Pietro less sympathetic.
Luckily, Moretti carries the film through to its touching finale with an emotional restraint that belies the profound desire for salvation of an imperfect man and father.
QUIET CHAOS
Fandango, RAI Cinema, Portobello, Phoenix Film Investment
Credits:
Director: Antonello Grimaldi
Screenwriters: Nanni Moretti, Laura Paolucci, Francesco Piccolo
Producer: Domenico Procacci
Executive producer: Eric Abraham
Director of photography: Alessandro Pesci
Production designer: Giada Calabria
Music: Paolo Buonvino
Costume designers: Alexandra Toesca
Editor: Angelo Nicolini
Cast:
Pietro Paladini: Nanni Moretti
Marta: Valeria Golino
Eleonora Simoncini: Isabella Ferrari
Carlo: Alessandro Gassman
Claudia: Blu Yoshimi
Jean Claude: Hippolyte Girardot
Boesson: Charles Berling
Samuele: Silvio Orlando
Running time -- 117 minutes
No MPAA rating...
ROME -- In Quiet Chaos, directed by Antontello Grimaldi (Bits and Pieces) and featuring Italian enfant terrible actor-director Nanni Moretti, what unfolds is a father's love for his 10-year-old daughter as he copes with the unexpected death of his wife. This marks the first time Moretti has starred in a film not directed by him in 13 years.
Quiet Chaos, which recently screened at the Berlin International Film Festival and is playing in Italy, will not disappoint international audiences that have come to appreciate Moretti's trademark irony and growing maturity as an actor. Make no mistake, this is a Moretti vehicle as there are few scenes in which he does not appear.
After a painfully stiff opening, the film slowly but assuredly loses its literary feel -- it was adapted from the eponymous novel by Sandro Veronesi by Moretti, Laura Paolucci and Francesco Piccolo -- to find its pace and heart. In the same moment that media executive Pietro Paladini (Moretti) and his brother Carlo (Alessandro Gassman) save two women from drowning, Pietro's wife dies from a fatal fall. Left alone with his daughter, Claudia (Blu Yoshimi), he worries about her lack of emotion over the loss as well as his own. Neither has broken down since the death, enveloped by a strange calm, and he does not understand why.
Shortly thereafter, on the first day of school, Pietro promises Claudia that he will wait for her in front of the building all day, without moving. He proceeds to do just that. One day turns into two, then a week and eventually months as he sits in a park in front of the school, observing and getting to know the other mothers, neighborhood residents and regular passersby.
His co-workers and family try to persuade him to get a grip on himself and return to work. Slowly, however, they start seeking Pietro not to offer consolation but to get advice. He becomes caught up in a pregnancy, the breakdown of the marriage of the woman he saved and his company's forthcoming merger.
A reluctant guru who wants only to be left alone, Pietro tries to make sense of his feelings and, in an effective use of narrative, creates lists in his head to keep himself occupied such as the airlines he has flown and houses he has lived in throughout his life.
Managing to avoid facile sentimentality, the story grows emotionally more and more engaging thanks to Moretti's impeccable comic timing and neurotic acumen. While we never forget we are watching Moretti, we do see a deeper side to him as his brusque awkwardness finds a perfect outlet here.
Not knowing how to help Claudia, in his own fumbling yet unrelenting way Pietro seems more surprised than anyone to realize that showing his daughter he loves her means offering her trustworthiness and stability, which we are led to believe did not come easily to him before Laura's death.
Moretti makes ample room for the other actors, from Gassman, whose playboy nonchalance is balanced by his deep love for his brother, to Silvio Orlando, who plays Pietro's nebbish colleague. Yoshimi is wonderfully low-key as the precocious yet hard-to-read Claudia. French stars Hippolyte Girardot and Charles Berling also give solid turns in their secondary roles.
Quiet Chaos already has sparked controversy for a sex scene between Moretti and Isabella Ferrari. Certainly not scandalous by European standards, the sequence is difficult to watch because Moretti is often called Italy's Woody Allen and like the American icon has always been known for his woman-crazed yet relatively sexless intellect and comedy. It therefore seems like watching a family member having sex, and rough sex at that, which makes the scene all the more perplexing. At best, it might have been intended to show that his increasing tenderness is truly new to him, but it is in such contrast to the rest of his character that it simply makes Pietro less sympathetic.
Luckily, Moretti carries the film through to its touching finale with an emotional restraint that belies the profound desire for salvation of an imperfect man and father.
QUIET CHAOS
Fandango, RAI Cinema, Portobello, Phoenix Film Investment
Credits:
Director: Antonello Grimaldi
Screenwriters: Nanni Moretti, Laura Paolucci, Francesco Piccolo
Producer: Domenico Procacci
Executive producer: Eric Abraham
Director of photography: Alessandro Pesci
Production designer: Giada Calabria
Music: Paolo Buonvino
Costume designers: Alexandra Toesca
Editor: Angelo Nicolini
Cast:
Pietro Paladini: Nanni Moretti
Marta: Valeria Golino
Eleonora Simoncini: Isabella Ferrari
Carlo: Alessandro Gassman
Claudia: Blu Yoshimi
Jean Claude: Hippolyte Girardot
Boesson: Charles Berling
Samuele: Silvio Orlando
Running time -- 117 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 2/21/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
COLOGNE, Germany -- Isabel Coixet's "Elegy", an adaptation of the Philip Roth bestseller "The Dying Animal", Erick Zonca's "Julia" starring Tilda Swinton and "Sparrow", the latest crime drama from Hong Kong helmer Johnnie To are among the titles that have been picked for the competition lineup of the 2008 Berlin International Film Festival.
Also heading to Berlin are Mike Leigh's North London drama "Happy-Go-Lucky;" Robert Guediguian's French working class thriller "Lady Jane" and the politically themed drama "Restless" from Israeli Amos Kollek.
Another competition film with strong political undertones is "Heart of Fire", Luigi Florni's adaptation the biography of African child soldier Senait Mehari. The film follows the cross-over success of his "The Story of the Weeping Camel" (2003), which Florni co-directed with Mongolian filmmaker Byambasuren Davaa.
"Heart of Fire" is only the second German film to make this year's cut in Berlin, the other being Doris Dorrie's "Kirschbluten -- Hanami". Berlin fest favorite Yoji Yamada returns to the competition this year with his latest, the WWII family drama "Kabei -- Our Mother".
Italy's Antonella Grimaldi, who last appeared in Berlin's Panorama sidebar with "Bits and Pieces" in 1996, will bring his literary adaptation of Sandro Veronesi's bestseller "Quiet Chaos" to the festival.
Also heading to Berlin are Mike Leigh's North London drama "Happy-Go-Lucky;" Robert Guediguian's French working class thriller "Lady Jane" and the politically themed drama "Restless" from Israeli Amos Kollek.
Another competition film with strong political undertones is "Heart of Fire", Luigi Florni's adaptation the biography of African child soldier Senait Mehari. The film follows the cross-over success of his "The Story of the Weeping Camel" (2003), which Florni co-directed with Mongolian filmmaker Byambasuren Davaa.
"Heart of Fire" is only the second German film to make this year's cut in Berlin, the other being Doris Dorrie's "Kirschbluten -- Hanami". Berlin fest favorite Yoji Yamada returns to the competition this year with his latest, the WWII family drama "Kabei -- Our Mother".
Italy's Antonella Grimaldi, who last appeared in Berlin's Panorama sidebar with "Bits and Pieces" in 1996, will bring his literary adaptation of Sandro Veronesi's bestseller "Quiet Chaos" to the festival.
- 1/10/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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