Italian Film Festival 2007

Transcription

1 Italian Film Festival Melbourne Sept 19 - Oct 7 Palace Balwyn, Como and Westgarth Sydney Sept 26 - Oct 15 Palace Norton Street and Academy Brisbane Oct Palace Centro Cinemas Perth Oct Cinema Paradiso and Luna On SX Adelaide Oct 25 - Nov 7 Palace Nova Eastend Hobart Nov 2-11 Liverpool s Picturehouse Canberra Nov 8-11 Greater Union Manuka

2 LAVAZZA ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL SYDNEY SCHEDULE PALACE ACADEMY TWIN PALACE NORTON STREET WED SEP PM GALA OPENING NIGHT 8pm arrivals for 8.45pm screening MANUAL OF LOVE 2 THU SEP 27 6:30 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 6:30 PM THE BALL 8:40 PM APNEA 8:20 PM THE LARK FARM FRI SEP 28 6:30 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 6:30 PM KISS ME, BABY 9:00 PM THE LARK FARM 8:50 PM THE DARK SEA SAT SEP 29 3:00 PM FOREVER VESPA 2:15 PM KISS ME, BABY 4:30 PM APNEA 4:30 PM THE DARK SEA 6:30 PM OUR COUNTRY 6:30 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 8:45 PM THE BALL 8:40 PM WHAT IS LOVE? SUN SEP 30 1:20 PM KISS ME, BABY 2:00 PM FOREVER VESPA 3:45 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 3:30 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 6:00 PM WHAT IS LOVE? 6:00 PM THE LARK FARM 8:10 PM THE DARK SEA 8:30 PM APNEA MON OCT 1 (PUB. HOL) 4:10 PM THE LARK FARM 4:20 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 6:30 PM KISS ME, BABY 6:30 PM THE BALL TUE OCT 2 6:30 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 6:30 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 8:50 PM SECRET JOURNEY 8:50 PM ONE OUT OF TWO WED OCT 3 6:30 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 6:30 PM THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS 8:50 PM NIGHT BUS 8:40 PM SECRET JOURNEY THU OCT 4 6:30 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 6:30 PM FOREVER VESPA 8:30 PM ONE OUT OF TWO 8:00 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 FRI OCT 5 6:30 PM THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS 6:30 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 8:40 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 8:40 PM NIGHT BUS SAT OCT 6 2:00 PM THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS 2:00 PM ONE OUT OF TWO 4:15 PM NIGHT BUS 4:15 PM SECRET JOURNEY 6:30 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 6:30 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 9:00 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 8:50 PM THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS SUN OCT 7 1:30 PM ONE OUT OF TWO 1:30 PM NIGHT BUS 3:45 PM SECRET JOURNEY 3:45 PM OUR COUNTRY 6:00 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 6:00 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 8:15 PM NIGHT BUS 8:00 PM ONE OUT OF TWO MON OCT 8 6:30 PM KISS ME, BABY 6:30 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 8:50 PM THE DARK SEA 9:00 PM THE LARK FARM TUE OCT 9 6:30 PM WHAT IS LOVE? 6:30 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 8:40 PM THE LARK FARM 8:50 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER WED OCT 10 6:30 PM THE BALL 6:30 PM SECRET JOURNEY 8:20 PM ONE OUT OF TWO 8:50 PM WHAT IS LOVE? THU OCT 11 6:30 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 6:30 PM KISS ME, BABY 8:30 PM THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS 8:50 PM THE DARK SEA FRI OCT 12 6:30 PM SECRET JOURNEY 7:00 PM THE BALL 8:45 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 8:50 PM THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS SAT OCT 13 2:40 PM THE BALL 2:00 PM KISS ME, BABY 4:40 PM THE DARK SEA 4:20 PM OUR COUNTRY 6:30 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 6:30 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 8:40 PM WHAT IS LOVE? 8:30 PM NIGHT BUS SUN OCT 14 1:15 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 1:15 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 3:45 PM OUR COUNTRY 3:15 PM SATURN IN OPPOSITION 6:00 PM ONE HUNDRED NAILS 5:45 PM WHAT IS LOVE? 8:00 PM THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER 8:00 PM MANUAL OF LOVE 2 MON OCT 15 6:30 PM BY POPULAR DEMAND - TBC 6:30 PM BY POPULAR DEMAND - TBC

3 TICKETING TERMS AND CONDITIONS SYDNEY September 26 October 15 Palace Norton Street 99 Norton Street, Leichhardt Palace Academy Twin 3a Oxford Street, Paddington TICKET PRICES (incl. GST): OPENING NIGHT GALA Sydney Premiere of Manual of Love 2 (Manuale d Amore 2) and Official Reception 8.00pm arrivals for 8.45pm screening, followed by official gala. Wednesday September 26 at Palace Norton Street All tickets $45.00 ($50 on the day) GENERAL ADMISSION Adult $16.00 Concessions* $13.50 *Eligible Concessions: Palace Movie Club Members, Full time Students (photo ID required), Senior Citizens, Health Care cardholders, Pensioners. The cardholder must present a current ID card in order to gain the concession. One discounted ticket per concession applies, with the exception of Palace Movie Club members who are entitled to two discounted tickets per valid membership. MULTIPLE FILM PASSES (excluding opening night and special events) 10 film pass - $ film pass - $65.00 Multi-film passes are for separate, pre-selected sessions for one person. All films must be chosen in advance to different films at the time of purchase. Passes from the cinemas ticket booths will only be applicable for sessions at that venue. (Telephone and internet ticketing can provide passes valid for sessions at both Paddington & Leichhardt). FOREVER VESPA DOCUMENTARY Adult $10.00 ADVANCE TICKETS NOW ON SALE - CINEMAS PALACE ACADEMY TWIN box office pm daily until sold out PALACE NORTON STREET box office pm daily until sold out Please note: Cinemas can only sell tickets for sessions at their respective venue. There are no booking fees for purchasing at cinemas with cash. Credit card transactions will incur a fee of 50 cents per ticket, to a maximum transaction fee of $ ONLINE TICKETING Tickets are available securely online 24 hours at MCA ticketing (click to: w w w.italianfilmfestival.com.au). All major credit cards accepted booking fees apply: $1.20 per ticket, plus $1.00 handling & delivery fee per transaction. - TELEPHONE TICKETING Tickets may be purchased for both venues using all major credit cards from MCA TICKETING. Call between 10am-6pm Mon-Fri, and 10am-1pm Saturday. Booking fees apply: 1-4 tickets - $2.20 per ticket, 5-9 tickets - $1.60 per ticket, 10 or more tickets - $1.20 per ticket. Phone bookings for weekday sessions will cease at 4pm on the day of screening. Weekend session bookings will cease at 4pm on the Friday prior. Tickets booked via telephone or via internet must be collected from the box office no later than 30 minutes prior to the advertised session time of the first session purchased. Tickets may only be collected during the abovementioned cinema box office hours. In some cases, tickets may not be available for collection until after 5pm on the day of screening. Please bring appropriate identification. FESTIVAL CONDITIONS - All festival films are restricted to persons 18 years of age and over, unless specified. This relates not necessarily to the content of the films, but to the legal requirements of holding the festival, as set by the Office of Film and Literature Classification. - Festival tickets, once acquired, are non-refundable and non-exchangeable. Lost or stolen tickets will not be replaced or refunded. - Patrons are encouraged to collect booked tickets 30 minutes prior to the session to avoid queues. - Palace Cinema passes and other complimentary passes, cinema promotions and free ticket offers are not valid for festival screenings. - Dates, times and programs are correct at the time of publication, but may need to be altered. We reluctantly reserve the right to withdraw, change and replace programs without notice. - All non-english language films have English subtitles. - All ticket prices are GST inclusive.

4 Opening Night Selection

5 MANUAL OF LOVE 2 MANUALE D AMORE 2 Director: Giovanni Veronesi Cast: Riccardo Scamarcio, Barbora Bobulova, Monica Bellucci, Carlo Verdone, Fabio Volo, Sergio Rubini, Antonio Albanese, Dario Bandiera, Elsa Pataky Runtime: 120 mins Deliciously wry and entertaining, MANUAL OF LOVE 2 is the star-studded opening night selection for this year s festival. Highly acclaimed director Giovanni Veronesi delves once again into the mysterious recesses of the human heart and emerges with four new interconnecting episodes of family tragedy, ill-fated love affairs, eternal passion and fleeting relationships in a humorous, romantic and moving look at the lasting effect of love on the human condition. Follow the journey of Franco and Manuela, a young infertile couple who fly to Barcelona for specialized fertility treatment; get involved in Filippo and Fosco s gay wedding preparations; judge for yourself whether Ernesto, a waiter at a high profile restaurant, should be having an illicit affair with the young Catalan kitchen hand, played by fiery newcomer Elsa Pataky; and meet Nicolas, a paralysed car crash survivor who falls in love with his beautiful physiotherapist Lucia, played by the gorgeous Monica Bellucci. For director Giovanni Veronesi, this film marks only the second part of an ambitious series of episodes to be made into five films dealing with all aspects of love. 3

6 APNEA, the debut feature film by Roberto Dordit, stars IFF favourite Claudio Santamaria (CRIME NOVEL) in a thriller about a man who discovers that his best friend was not who he thought he was. After a brilliant career as a fencer, Paolo is now thirty-five and has become a sports journalist for a local newspaper in Vicenza. When his best friend Franz, an ex-champion like himself, dies of a heart attack, Paolo subsequently discovers that his friend had been hiding some skeletons in his closet. APNEA Director: Roberto Dordit Cast: Claudio Santamaria, Fabrizia Sacchi, Michela Noonan, Diego Ribon, Giuseppe Battiston, Elio De Capitani, Daniele Mauro, Emilio De Marchi, Enrica Rosso. Runtime: 93 mins For Paolo the search for truth becomes an intrusion in a hostile world that fascinates him but also exposes him to ever increasing risks. Not screening in Canberra or Hobart. 4 Lavazza Italian Film Festival 2007

7 THE BALL, a comedy directed by Claudio Antonini starring Laura Morente about a liscio singer who wants to try a new style of music, and her son who, instead of continuing to suffer through his mother s intense and complicated love life, decides to find her the right guy. 12-year-old Raul is pint-sized, witty and wise for his age. He lives with his mother, Monica, and accompanies her to concerts, to watch her sing, but also sees her suffer when love affairs end badly because of her poor choice in men. Although still too young to know what love is, he realises that he must intervene and so he embarks on a series of awkward ploys to introduce his mother to his school teacher. THE BALL LISCIO Director: Claudio Antonini Cast: Laura Morante, Umberto Morelli, Antonio Catania Runtime: 80 mins Prolific Italian actress, Laura Morente (DON T TELL, THE SON S ROOM) changes pace in this charming tale about love, music, and the important bond between a mother and her son. Lavazza Italian Film Festival

8 DARK SEA MARE NERO Director: Roberta Torre Cast: Luigi Lo Cascio, Anna Mouglalis, Maurizio Donadoni, Andrea Osvárt Runtime: 83 mins From the director of multi-awardwinning Mafia drama ANGELA, comes this red light thriller about a young police inspector who, while investigating the homicide of a girl, finds himself drawn into the torrid and ambiguous side of Roman night life. Luigi Lo Cascio (GOOD MORNING, NIGHT) stars as homicide detective Luca, assigned to investigate the murder of Valentina. To the world, she was a hard-working student, yet she had a hidden life that involved sex clubs and prostitution. Luca becomes obsessed with the victim and the seedy clubs she frequented and is inexorably drawn into this netherworld of couples searching for humiliating kinks. His morbid fascination begins to pull him down this creepy path too and, under the guise of searching for Valentina s killer, Luca slowly lures his girlfriend Veronica (Anna Mouglalis) into the world that s enveloping him Punctuated by David Lynch-esque visual interiors, DARK SEA also features a remarkable soundtrack by top Asian composer Shigeru Umebayashi (MY BLUEBERRY NIGHTS). Not screening in Hobart. 7

9 The Vespa: An Italian symbol of a fresh start at the end of World War II; a picture of optimism and of growing wealth; an emblem of the family; and the witness of many love stories. Exactly 60 years after its arrival on the scene, the Vespa is still a cult object worldwide for young and old, a vehicle capable of changing its look while keeping its own familiar design. The vespa, a mere scooter, has remained in vogue for no less than six decades. Its story runs parallel with the history of Italy and Europe from the end of the war until present day, step by step with the social and cultural changes that have taken place in the last 60 years. FOREVER VESPA Directors: Pippo Cappellano and Marina Cappabianca Runtime: 52 mins This documentary was shot on and will be screened in aspect ratio 4:3 The story is narrated with the help of firsthand testimonials, exclusive interviews with those who first launched the Vespa on the market, designers of various models over the years, those who have analysed the Vespa phenomenon, as well as charming interviews with collectors and fans of Vespas worldwide. Not screening in Canberra or Hobart. All Tickets $10 8 Lavazza Italian Film Festival 2007

10 Prolific director and President of Cinecitta Studios, Pupi Avati (A HEART ELSEWHERE, THE SECOND WEDDING NIGHT) delivers a touching comedy about three stepsisters playing cupid for their father, a jaded TV star whose career has seen better days. As lacerating as it is comical, Avati s first film set in Rome shines against the sparkling backdrop of Christmas in Italy. Actor Sandro Lanza (the legendary Diego Abatantuono) is having a hard time. Over the past few years he has lost his hair, his friends and also his whip-smart tongue with which he used to be able to turn any situation to his own advantage. Once the star of his own TV series, his role has now dwindled down to a bit part. After a disastrous plastic surgery operation he decides to fake a suicide attempt to garner publicity and get his name back into the celebrity rags. THE GET-TOGETHER DINNER LA CENA PER FARLI CONOSCERE Director: Pupi Avati Cast: Diego Abatantuono, Vanessa Incontrada, Violante Placido, Ines Sastre, Francesca Neri. Runtime: 99 mins His three estranged daughters, all by different mothers, rush to his bedside. Reunited after many years, they decide that their father needs to meet a different kind of woman to get him back on track and they have just the woman in mind! Alma Kero (Francesca Neri), a cultured, intelligent and t woman is the type ro has always avoided es he know, his re already organizing them to meet Lavazza Italian Film Festival

11 KISS ME, BABY BACIAMI PICCINA Directed: Roberto Cimpanelli Cast: Neri Marcorè, Vincenzo Salemme, Elena Russo, Gianni Cavina Runtime: 111 mins Elegant and inspired, KISS ME, BABY is part tender love-story, witty road movie and historical drama. Cimpanelli s superb direction tells the story of a couple on their honeymoon at the most unlikely of times the middle of World War II. Love, passion, despair, bombings, hunger and death. Welcome to Italy, September 8, After being led into a disastrous war by Mussolini, Italy surrenders to the Allies and joins with them to fight against Hitler and the Nazi regime. On the eve of this historic date we meet Umberto, an honest and reliable policeman and his long standing fiancée Luisa. When Umberto is asked to safely escort flamboyant con man Raoul Nuvolini to Venice, Luisa joins him. After all, Venice is the city of love and she has been waiting patiently to marry for years. As the group of three board a train bound for Venice they are unaware that their lives and the fate of their country will change forever. 11

12 Veteran Italian directors Paolo and Vittorio Taviani (PADRE PADRONE) deliver the first highprofile film after Atom Egoyan s Ararat to examine the Armenian genocide perpetrated by Turkish forces in 1915, a pre-cursor to the Jewish Holocaust and a topic that s still considered taboo in Turkey today. Based on a novel by Antonia Arslan, a literature professor now living in Italy, the film enjoyed a controversial World Premiere at the Berlin Film festival. It deals with the history of a middle-class Armenian family living in provincial Turkey. The kind-hearted Aram (Tcheky Karyo) and his wife, Armineh (Canadian-Armenian actress Arsinee Khanjian), ignore the warning of war from the Young Turk government in Istanbul and instead ready The Lark Farm, their country estate, for the arrival of Aram s brother, Assadour (Mariano Rigillo), from Venice. But, the charming family atmosphere is soon shockingly overturned... THE LARK FARM LA MASSERIA DELLE ALLODOLE Director: Paolo and Vittorio Taviani Cast: Paz Vega, Arsinee Khanjian, Tcheky Karyo, Moritz Bleibtreu, Mohammed Bakri, Angela Molina, Andre Dussollier Runtime: 120 mins Fantastic performances by an international cast playing Armenians, Turks, Greeks, Italians and Syrians including Spanish star Paz Vega whose charisma anchors the story in the role of Nunik Avakian, a spirited beauty in Turkish officer.. Lavazza Italian Film Festival

13 It s a colourful summer in the 80s, Luca (Nicolas Vaporidis) and his friends prepare for the dreaded maturità (high school graduation) exams, with all the troubles, emotions, mishaps and delights that typically afflict teenagers at this stressful time. At a party, Luca falls in love with an extroverted yet mysterious girl, Claudia (Cristiana Capotondi). He only knows her name and has no clue about her family... Meanwhile, Luca is desperately trying to get back in favour with his literature teacher (Giorgio Faletti), who will be the teacher sitting in on his oral exams THE NIGHT BEFORE EXAMS NOTTE PRIMA DEGLI ESAMI Director: Fausto Brizzi Cast: Nicolas Vaporidis, Cristiana Capotondi, Giorgio Faletti, Andrea De Rosa, Sarah Maestri, Riccardo Minggio, Valeria Fabrizi. Runtime: 108 mins First-time director Fausto Brizzi worked from his original screenplay to pay a heart-felt homage to the 80s with this ensemble comedy that involves several generations simultaneously: today s youth, but also those who were young in the 80s and in the 60s. The bright young cast gives the fast-moving screenplay sparkle, and the film soared to the top of the charts immediately upon its release, becoming one of the biggest blockbusters ever at the Italian box office. THE NIGHT BEFORE FINALS, which takes its title from a famous song by Antonello Venditti, is a delight for youthful audiences, and is also a tremendously entertaining trip down memory lane for thirty and fortysomethings, who will remember the bizarre TV shows of the time, and favourite tunes from Queen and Duran Duran! Winner of the David Di Donatello Award 2006 for Best New Director. Lavazza Italian Film Festival

14 NIGHT BUS NOTTURNO BUS Director: Davide Marengo Cast: Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Valerio Mastandrea, Ennio Fantastichini, Anna Romantowska, Roberto Citran, Francesco Pannofino, Ivan Franek, Antonio Catania, Iaia Forte. Runtime: 105 mins Simultaneously a noir and a romantic comedy, an action film and a thriller with moments of pulp, Davide Marengo s NIGHT BUS, based on the eponymous novel by Giampiero Rigosi, is a true mix of genres all italiana. A host of shady characters are after a microchip containing incriminating evidence against a bigwig in Poland. Carlo Matera (Ennio Fantastichini) is the exsecret serviceman hired to retrieve it, but the fortune he s been given to buy it back gets into the hands of ruthless nightclub proprietor Andrea (Ivan Franek). Small-time player Leila (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) cons the conman, not realizing the stash he s got until after she s run off with the briefcase. Mezzogiorno is undoubtedly the soul of the picture, switching identities and stories while enjoying the thrill of the chase. Winner of the David Di Donatello Award 2007 for Best Original Song. 15

15 ONE HUNDRED NAILS screened at this year s prestigious Cannes Film Festival in honour of director Ermanno Olmi who won the Palme d Or in 1978 for THE TREE WITH THE WOODEN CLOGS and who announced that this is his last feature film; from now on he intends only to make documentaries. In a startling prologue, the overseer of an ancient library screams out in horror and summons the authorities when he discovers 100 rare manuscripts nailed to the floor with giant railroad spikes. We then follow a young theology professor from the University of Bologna (Raz Degan) as he retreats from his complex university life to a deserted farmhouse on the River Po, abandoning everything - friends, family and all material possessions. Around this homestead weave stories of love and friendship between the professor and the local inhabitants that he meets in a spontaneous understanding where all things are possible. ONE HUNDRED NAILS CENTOCHIODI Director: Ermanno Olmi Cast: Raz Degan, Luna Bendandi, Amina Syed, Michele Zattara, Damiano Scaini Runtime: 92 mins Olmi s stated aim was to depict a figure exhibiting the humanity of Christ -- not the Son of God, but the Son of Man; a theme which struck a chord in Italy, a country where religion is paramount, given the huge success of the Italian release. Not screening 16 Lavazza Italian Film Festival 2007

16 Refreshingly real, ONE OUT OF TWO furthers Cappuccio s reputation for realistically depicting contemporary Italian life in this touching chronicle of a one man s emotional rebirth. Lorenzo (Fabio Volo) has everything: a successful career in law, a beautiful girlfriend (Anita Caprioli) and a magnificent apartment overlooking Genoa s harbour. He is on the cusp of securing a business deal that will make him a wealthy man when he one day faints and is rushed to hospital where he wakes to discover that he has a malignant brain tumour. For a high flying lawyer who pulled himself up from working-class roots, illness was not in Lorenzo s plans and lying back and waiting for the test results is made more difficult, with everyone treating him like a delicate time bomb. Lorenzo can only relate to his hospital roommate, Giovanni, a Roman truck driver who seems to understand Lorenzo better than he ever understood himself. ONE OUT OF TWO UNO SU DUE Director: Eugenio Cappuccio With: Fabio Volo, Anita Caprioli, Ninetto Davoli, Giuseppe Battiston, Tresy Taddei, Agostina Belli, Paola Rota, Francesco Crescimone, Emanuela Sparta, Luca Martella, Pino Calabrese. Runtime: 100 mins The character of Giovanni is marvellously played by onetime Pasolini regular, Ninetto Davoli, who won the Best Italian Actor Award at the Rome Film Festival 2006 for his performance in this film. 18 Lavazza Italian Film Festival 2007

17 OUR COUNTRY A CASA NOSTRA Director: Francesca Comencini Cast: Valeria Golino, Luca Zingaretti, Giuseppe Battiston, Laura Chiatti. Runtime: 106 mins Milan is a cool, dark and eminently unforgiving city in the opening scenes of Francesca Comencini s OUR COUNTRY - the city is icy blue, the sounds muffled, but as the story unfolds, it s clear that trading is the heart and soul of the story the trading of souls and of money. Ugo (Luca Zingaretti) is an established banker - a shrewd, despondent man who operates in illegal ways. Rita (Valeria Golino), chief of the tax police, is a strong willed, sensitive woman who is leading an investigation on him. The two are surrounded by a stream of other characters a model, an assassin, a prostitute, a pensioner - all with their weaknesses and fragility, their goodness, their evil and their contradictions. Characters meet, clash, hate and love each other. In the end, all of these lives will meet in one place, one specific moment, to face life and death as the city around them watches... Not screening in Canberra or Hobart. 19

18 Andrea (Giorgio Pasotti) is a wealthy young Swiss financier who, one night at a concert, is struck by the stirring beauty of a pianist named Antonia (THE HEART ELSEWHERE s Vanessa Incontrada) and immediately decides he ll marry her. The years pass, three children are born and as the passion wanes, their marriage turns into a routine. Then Antonia, who gave up her artistic life for Andrea, meets a talented violinist Daniel (Andoni Gracia) and takes up her piano playing again. For Andrea this sudden change will mean his greatest fears are coming true - that his wife will no longer belong to him, that his wife is cheating on him WHAT IS LOVE? QUALE AMORE Director: Maurizio Sciarra Cast: Giorgio Pasotti, Vanessa Incontrada, Maria Schneider Runtime: 97 mins Maurizio Sciarra (OFF TO THE REVOLUTION IN A 2CV) delivers a compelling noir-drama about what would drive a man to kill his wife, based on the Leo Tolstoy novella The Kreutzer Sonata but set in present-day Lugano, Switzerland. WHAT IS LOVE? is fascinating in its breadth & scope about marriage, compatibility, jealousy and matters of the heart, yet directed and shot with wonderful economy. Pasotti, so memorable in AFTER MIDNIGHT, is magnificent - his extraordinarily subtle and powerful performance gives the film its beating heart. 20 Lavazza Italian Film Festival 2007

19 Multi-award-winning Italo- Turkish director Ferzan Ozpetek, (FACING WINDOWS, THE IGNORANT FAIRIES) explores the relationships between a group of friends in this moving ensemble piece, a true highlight of the festival. A group of friends meet up for dinner. The hosts of these regular gatherings are the dynamic Lorenzo and his life partner, the successful writer Davide. They happily spend their time with a circle of intimates: Antonio (Stefano Accorsi) and Angelica (Margherita Buy), a married couple with kids; sunny cokehead Roberta (Ambra Angiolini); Davide s acerbic ex Sergio (Ennio Fantastichini) and equally biting friend Neval (Serra Yilmaz) and her policeman husband (Filippo Timi); and newcomer Paolo (Michelangelo Tommaso). SATURN IN OPPOSITION SATURNO CONTRO Director: Ferzan Ozpetek Cast Stefano Accorsi, Margherita Buy, Pierfrancesco Favino, Serra Yilmaz, Ennio Fantastichini, Ambra Angiolini, Luca Argentero, Isabella Ferrari Runtime: 110 mins Ozpetek, always the brilliant group portrait artist, brings his characters masterfully towards a critical moment when they re forced to cast off their stiffened masks and to return to the very essence of the friendship that unites them. Winner of the David di Donatello Award 2007 for Best Supporting Actress - Ambra Angiolini. 22 Lavazza Italian Film Festival 2007

20 SECRET JOURNEY VIAGGIO SEGRETO Director: Roberto Andò Cast: Alessio Boni, Donatella Finocchiaro, Valeria Solarino, Claudia Gerini, Marco Baliani, Emir Kusturica, Roberto Herlitzka, Giselda Volodi, Fausto Russo Alesi. Runtime: 103 mins Roberto Andò started his career as assistant to the likes of Federico Fellini and Francis Ford Coppola. In his new film he directs Alessio Boni (ARRIVEDERCI AMORE CIAO), one of Italy s most respected actors, in a slick psychological thriller based on the novel The Reconstructionist by Josephine Hart, transposing the story from Ireland to Sicily. Leo (Boni), a psychoanalyst in his forties lives with his younger sister, Ale (Claudia Gerini). When Harold (director Emir Kusturica), a famous and hugely successful artist, announces his intention to marry Ale and as a wedding present, to buy back the family s ancestral home Leo becomes desperate to prevent the transaction and returns to his native Sicily to confront a past he had cut out of his life. Andò provocatively layers parallel stories as the steady buildup of action moves towards a dangerous conclusion. Leo, whose life thus far has seen him alleviate other people s suffering, is now compelled to look inside himself to reconstruct the shattered pieces of his past. 23

21 Organised by Principal Sponsor Gold Sponsor Media Partners