Films & Schedules - ITALY

Winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and this year’s Italian submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, Caesar Must Die deftly melds narrative and documentary in a powerful drama-within-a-drama. In Rome’s Rebibbia prison, the prisoners prepare to stage Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and in exploring the text find a tale of fraternity, power, and betrayal that parallels their own lives and stories. Seamlessly moving in and out of the text as they wrestle with notions of necessity and the boundaries of order, drama comes alive on multiple, and timeless, levels. “This latest masterpiece from Italy’s famed...

Winner of the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and this year’s Italian submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, Caesar Must Die deftly melds narrative and documentary in a powerful drama-within-a-drama. In Rome’s Rebibbia prison, the prisoners prepare to stage Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and in exploring the text find a tale of fraternity, power, and betrayal that parallels their own lives and stories. Seamlessly moving in and out of the text as they wrestle with notions of necessity and the boundaries of order, drama comes alive on multiple, and timeless, levels. “This latest masterpiece from Italy’s famed Taviani brothers not only serves as a deeply human document but a caustic portrait of our own imprisoned societies, reminding us that a life without art truly is a prison.”—AFI Fest (76 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Allonsanfan (74), Padre Padrone (77), The Night of Shooting Stars (82), Fiorile (93)

Sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute, San Francisco and the Italian Film Commission, Los Angeles.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Oscar Submissions, Documentary.

Renato Zucchelli lives in the beautiful mountain farmlands just outside Milan. He is the last traveling shepherd in the region, the last man tending sheep in Lombardy, an area ever consumed by urbanization. Renato has a dream: to lead his flock into the heart of Milan to meet children who have never seen someone like him, showing them that dreams and freedom will always exist as long as there is still room to believe in a last shepherd. At once funny, touching, and serious, The Last Shepherd is ultimately a warm and endearing portrait of a man, his dog, his...

Renato Zucchelli lives in the beautiful mountain farmlands just outside Milan. He is the last traveling shepherd in the region, the last man tending sheep in Lombardy, an area ever consumed by urbanization. Renato has a dream: to lead his flock into the heart of Milan to meet children who have never seen someone like him, showing them that dreams and freedom will always exist as long as there is still room to believe in a last shepherd. At once funny, touching, and serious, The Last Shepherd is ultimately a warm and endearing portrait of a man, his dog, his family, and his sheep, who conquer a city with nothing more than the power of imagination. (76 mins.)

First Feature.

Sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute, San Francisco and the Italian Film Commission, Los Angeles.

Interests: New Directors, Family Fare, Documentary.

Giordana’s engrossing tale of terrorism, conspiracy, and deceit is based on a devastating true story set within decades of Italian political violence and resistance. A bomb goes off at a Milan bank in December 1969, killing 17 and wounding dozens of others. Detective Luigi Calabresi heads up the investigation of the crime, which many in the government want to pin on the anarchist left. Unconvinced, Calabresi wants to investigate the shadowy organizations on the neo-fascist right, including possible CIA connections. But after a key suspect meets an untimely death, the clock starts ticking for Calabresi as a malevolent, Machiavellian labyrinth...

Giordana’s engrossing tale of terrorism, conspiracy, and deceit is based on a devastating true story set within decades of Italian political violence and resistance. A bomb goes off at a Milan bank in December 1969, killing 17 and wounding dozens of others. Detective Luigi Calabresi heads up the investigation of the crime, which many in the government want to pin on the anarchist left. Unconvinced, Calabresi wants to investigate the shadowy organizations on the neo-fascist right, including possible CIA connections. But after a key suspect meets an untimely death, the clock starts ticking for Calabresi as a malevolent, Machiavellian labyrinth of deceit by extremists, police, informants, and spies envelopes the investigation. (129 mins.)

Selected Filmography: One Hundred Steps (00), The Best of Youth (03), Sanguepazzo (08)

Sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute, San Francisco and the Italian Film Commission, Los Angeles.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature, History.

Garrone takes a critical swipe at contemporary Italian society and the powerful role of television and the media in instilling obsessive envy and lust for fame. After seeing a former reality star make an electrifying surprise appearance at his cousin’s wedding (one of several paid appearances for the enterprising self-promoter), common man Luciano decides to try out for the Italian version of “Big Brother.” Sure he will soon get the call, Luciano begins to conduct his life as if he’s already being watched. Playing Luciano’s delusions not only for laughs but for thoughtful, ethical examination, Garrone blends a Fellini-esque love...

Garrone takes a critical swipe at contemporary Italian society and the powerful role of television and the media in instilling obsessive envy and lust for fame. After seeing a former reality star make an electrifying surprise appearance at his cousin’s wedding (one of several paid appearances for the enterprising self-promoter), common man Luciano decides to try out for the Italian version of “Big Brother.” Sure he will soon get the call, Luciano begins to conduct his life as if he’s already being watched. Playing Luciano’s delusions not only for laughs but for thoughtful, ethical examination, Garrone blends a Fellini-esque love for grotesquerie and fairy-tale surrealism with gritty Neapolitan social realism. (116 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Land in the Middle (96), Roman Summer (00), The Embalmer (02), First Love (04), Gomorrah (08)

Winner of the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

Sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute, San Francisco and the Italian Film Commission, Los Angeles.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature, Comedy.

Winner of the Best First Feature Prize at the London Film Festival, this tender story begins with Shun Li working in a textile factory near Rome. She’s slowly paying off the broker who brought her from China to Italy, while trying to save money to bring her young son over. Transferred to work as a bartender in Chioggia, a small island town in the Venetian lagoon, she meets Bepi, a handsome old Slav immigrant nicknamed “The Poet.” A soulful friendship grows between them, but soon prejudice threatens their innocent relationship. Both a tender portrait of survival in an immigrant world...

Winner of the Best First Feature Prize at the London Film Festival, this tender story begins with Shun Li working in a textile factory near Rome. She’s slowly paying off the broker who brought her from China to Italy, while trying to save money to bring her young son over. Transferred to work as a bartender in Chioggia, a small island town in the Venetian lagoon, she meets Bepi, a handsome old Slav immigrant nicknamed “The Poet.” A soulful friendship grows between them, but soon prejudice threatens their innocent relationship. Both a tender portrait of survival in an immigrant world and an exploration of Venetian life far from the Grand Canal, Segre’s delicate, bittersweet film showcases a memorable performance by Tao Zhao, who earned the David di Donatello (Italian Academy) Best Actress Award. (100 mins.)

First Feature.

Sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute, San Francisco and the Italian Film Commission, Los Angeles.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: New Directors, Narrative Feature.