cafe Pellicola - window to fine italian cinema

Session Winter 2007. Last movie.

Lampedusa, an island of 6000 people, closer to Africa than to Sicily.

They don’t even speak italian. They don’t speak anyway. This movie talks through the southern people’s glance, the wild gestures of bearfooted children, the dark thick skin of the fishermen and the close mouth of their women. Blessed by the blinding light of the sun and cursed by the sensual blue of an untouchable sea.

In this cultural prison, Grazia (Valeria Golino), wife of Pietro (Vincenzo Amato) and mother of Pasquale, Filippo e Marinella, free born, spontaneous, genuine, is a threat to the immobile agelong mentality of this secluded village.

What happened to Grazia? sweetly floating among the bubbles of thousands men in the night of San Bartolo?

Those who didn’t come to this last class, really missed a great experience. An original venetian gondola, a charming real singing gondoliere James, prosecco from Victors cave, cheese from Israel by Shlomi, Andrea’s lost italian words, unforgettable peperoni marinati by James (always singing), my curious provoking questions about this sweet movie suspended above this wonderful surreal scenery.

Session Winter 2007. Last class.

by the way, COMPARE SOUNDTRACK!

BUT… you didn’t miss the chance to COMMENT THE MOVIE.

IN ITALIANO PER FAVORE.

Che cosa succede secondo voi a Grazia?

Grazie Jim.

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Franco Elica, a famous movie director, accidentally in Sicily, has been given the job by the Prince of Gravina, to shoot the movie of his daughter’s wedding.

The film opens with the scene of the wedding of his daughter (the director’s), that he initially let others film it, but then he jumps into the crowd together with the other operators, among anxious video cameras and obsessive flashes.
It’s the first scene that introduces a sort of dreamlike vision of the reality. A bit in slow motion, a bit filtered. It is a scene that recalls the dream. While we are watching in fact, we are not sure this is reality. Maybe is Franco dreaming, I think. I get curious. It’s a Bellochio that I don’t know. While I am already visualizing Ettore Picciafuoco, from My mother’s smile, sitting on the red couch abandoned to the sleep, or at the computer ravished by shifty images. In fact, the majority of the staff belongs to the beautiful precedent movie.

Franco Elica is looking for an actress for his new movie based on the novel I promessi sposi (The Betrothed) by Alessandro Manzoni, 1840. He is looking for a Lucia Mondella, the main character, the pure, the honest and the wise young girl.

The whole story is quite surreal, typical from Marco Bellocchio. It’s the exasperation of the hope and of the tragedy of human nature, continuously conflicting with conventions. There is a Prince rich in intellectuality but poor in patrimony, obliged to give his daughter Bona as wife of a wealthy still idiot guy, victim of his family with no hope.
There is little princess Bona, the beauty hidden in a convent by her father, to prevent the beast, Franco Elica from kidnapping her before the salvation wedding. It is in fact a kind of transposition of I Promessi Sposi into a new era, or just into a new interpretation.

I don’t like to say it, but maybe there is also a Fellinian touch. The music, the processions, the bands, the street artists, the ingenuousness, the ridiculous simplicity of modern man.

Meanwhile we hear one of those distinctive phrases that get stuck into your head and will never leave “in Italia sono I morti che comandano – in Italy dead people rule the country”. He’s referring to artists, meaning that, only after you die you are recognized by the art authorities, otherwise is only a matter of convenient political choices. Even if, also respecting the deads is a conventional choice. So basically an artist in the need for recognition has short life…

Typical subtle subversive attitude from Bellocchio. I love his style, elegantly insolent like his Prince of Gravina, the charming Semy Frey.

Franco Elica, a never boring, even if repetitive, Sergio Castellitto. A movie director (in the movie) who can go beyond any rules. He can dare, because is an artist. Because an artist, recognized as an artist (popular, and apparently talented) can more or less do anything he wants. He can even transform a wedding movie into a sexy movie, nobody would criticize his job.

It’s the game of real us or conventional us. The perception of life through conventional filters, the acceptance of rules without reactions, the intoxication of feelings tied by our social needs.
However, Bellocchio gives us a chance, that small recommendation… dare to dream and you’ll be safe. Or just change perspective. Invert perspective. Subvert perspective. It’s not a luxury for artists only.

Marco Bellocchio can offer surreal situations but every single scene is dramatically real, or is the opposite. I don’t know. But the truth doesn’t change. Beautiful, elegant, sagacious, his movies are just delicious.

And… the symbols… the evocative names… the irony. And the setting… the details…

Mi piace.

The key ingredients of this film include: Academy award winner director Giuseppe Tornatore; international debut of bombshell Monica Belluci; coming of age story of a young boy in a small Sicilian village during World War II; and the timeless music of Maestro Ennio Morricone.

Yes, the film may look like an attempt to repurpose Tornatore’s success of 1989 Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, some may even say forgetaboutit it’s all about MONICA! But I think the movie is simply about two opposite perceptions about the different. In this case, the differentiating element is beauty. These positive or negative perceptions are usually shaped by the beholder’s potential of winning versus the fear of losing.

I’ll explain. Here the positive perception is dressed up as a sweet fantasy. Throughout the film young Renato sexually fantasizes about Malèna, but never gets to exchange even a minimal dialog with her. Yes, the possibility of a 13 years old boy still wearing his short pants (childhood label) having an affair with a woman in her 30’s in this context - is literally nonexistent.

Put simply, the potential of winning is meager, but in Renato’s mind it could easily happen. So he’s left conjuring up more elaborate fantasies about making it happen with Malèna from afar.

The negative perception is held by the women of the small village who are threatened by Malèna’s beauty. They’re obviously driven by the fear of losing their husbands to Malèna’s enchanting spell. Only after Malèna’s husband brings her back home – minimizing the threat – Malèna gains back her respect as old order is fully reinstated.

This interplay between opposite perceptions got me thinking. We’re pretty much all experiencing this in our everyday lives. Our reward system is programmed to see good opportunities as potential wins and unpleasant ones – as potential loses.

You have an upcoming hot date, interview for a dream job, meeting with a potential big client, even buying a lotto ticket. The days before the actual event, are what I call the sweet pre-feeling time where you’re pretty much walking on air. Sometimes that big event gets delayed a bit – so you even get an extra dose of pre-feeling bliss. Hey I might get that cushy job, Hey You Never Know the lotto slogan intoxicates us. The opportunity is yours if you play it right. In short, it’s fantasy time before the opportunity is gnawed by reality fangs.

Now compare that with your feelings about your dentist appointment next Tuesday…

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