Open Roads: New Italian Cinema 2012
North America’s leading showcase for contemporary Italian cinema returns with an eclectic slate of regional dramas, sophisticated social comedies, and edgy genre films that represent the work of cinematic masters as well as emerging talents.
Lineup
Antonio and Marco Manetti
2011|
Italy|
80 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Directors Antonio & Marco Manetti and actress Francesca Cuttica in person at June 10 screening!
A Chinese interpreter is asked to translate for a certain Mr. Wang, and nothing will ever be the same again, in the Manetti Brothers’ provocative sci-fi tale.
Ermanno Olmi
2011|
Italy|
87 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Master filmmaker Ermanno Olmi (The Tree of Wooden Clogs) returns with this powerful tale of the transformation of a church slated for demolition into a true haven for the poor and persecuted.
Gianfranco Giagni
2010|
Italy|
52 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Note: Q&A with Dante Ferretti has been cancelled.
Recent winner of a third Oscar for his extraordinary work on Hugo, Fellini, Pasolini and Scorsese collaborator Dante Ferretti reveals his approach to creating a film’s look in this insightful tribute.
Daniele Vicari
2012|
Italy / Romania / France|
116 minutes|
Several languages with English subtitles
Writer-director Daniele Vicari in person!
A searing re-creation of the controversial police raid at the Diaz School during the 2001 G8 Summit in Genoa that offers a revealing look at a great modern tragedy.
Francesco Bruni
2011|
Italy|
95 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Director Francesco Bruni in person at June 9 screening!
The life of Bruno, a failed writer and giver of private lessons, turns upside down when he learns that one of his students is actually his son, in this delicious, award-winning comedy.
Massimiliano Bruno
2011|
Italy|
95 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Actors Raul Bova and Paolo Cortellesi in person!
Strapped for cash, a formerly upper-class housewife discovers the wonderful world of escort services as well as an Italy she scarcely knew existed.
Ivan Cotroneo
2011|
Italy|
99 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Director Ivan Cotroneo in person on June 11!
With feuding parents and a cousin who thinks he’s Superman, Peppino tries to make sense of a rapidly changing ‘70s Italy in Ivan Cotroneo’s bittersweet Neapolitan comedy.
Guido Lombardi
2011|
Italy|
100 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
A remarkable guided tour into the world of clandestine African immigrants living in the shadow of Naples.
Davide Manuli
2012|
Italy|
90 minutes|
Italian and English with English subtitles
Director Davide Manulli in person!
Western, surrealism and sci-fi collide in this extraordinary update of the tale of the mysterious “wild boy,” starring Vincent Gallo (in a duel role) and featuring a pulsing soundtrack by electronic composer Vitalic.
Ferzan Ozpetek
2012|
105 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Director Ferzan Ozpetek in person at June 8 screening!
An aspiring actor moves into a new apartment only to discover he’s sharing it with some spectral housemates.
Marina Spada
2011|
Italy|
88 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Director Marina Spada in person!
A rich, highly-nuanced and, at times, contradictory portrait of a businesswoman whose success starts to feel increasingly hollow.
Gianluca and Massimliano De Serio
2011|
Italy / Romania|
103 minutes|
Italian and Romanian with English subtitles
Directors Gianluca and Massimliano De Serio in person at June 10 screening!
An intense and emotional cat-and-mouse game develops between an old, cancer-stricken man and the desperate young woman who comes to his aid.
Andrea Segre
2011|
Italy|
96 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
Director Andrea Segre in person!
A Chinese immigrant and an older Slavic fisherman strike up a surprising, tender friendship in this lovely portrait of outsiders making their way in contemporary Italy.
Emanuele Crialese
2011|
Italy / France|
88 minutes|
Italian with English subtitles
A simple act of mercy makes outlaws of a fishing family from a small island off Sicily in director Emanuele Crialese’s lyrical, yet hard-hitting, modern fable.
Since 2001, the first summer breezes of June have brought a fresh crop of new Italian films and filmmakers to Lincoln Center. Open Roads: New Italian Cinema has become the leading North American showcase for contemporary Italian cinema as well as one of our most popular programs. Established filmmakers such as Ermanno Olmi (featured again this year), Mario Monicelli and Pupi Avati have premiered new works here alongside those of emerging filmmakers such as Matteo Garrone, Ferzan Ozpetek (also featured in this year’s program), Paolo Sorrentino and Susanna Nichiarelli. A new generation of actors—Margherita Buy, Sergio Castellitto, Toni Servillo, Donatella Finocchiaro—were discovered and embraced by our audiences at Open Roads.
When the series first began, there was an excitement about a kind of “new regionalism,” for which Italian filmmakers were heading to diverse parts of the country—Apulia, Bari, Friuli—that had rarely appeared on screen; some of these films were even shot in the local dialects, forcing audiences to reads subtitles when they were released outside of their areas of production. While that penchant for regionalism can be seen in this year’s selection in films such as Terraferma, Horses and Annalisa, other tendencies are also in evidence. The Italian cinema is perhaps the quintessential social cinema, with films regularly taking on even the most divisive issues; many of the films included this year—even comedies such as A Flat for Three and Escort in Love—offer their own perspectives on contemporary Italy. Another development is the return of genre cinema, whether in the wildly innovative The Legend of Kaspar Hauser or the quietly haunting The Arrival of Wang. Today’s young Italian filmmakers are embracing classic storytelling modes and formulas and breathing new life into them.
So join us once again in welcoming back an old friend: Italian cinema!
On occasion of this year’s London Olympic games, select screenings in Open Roads will be preceded by clips from the Instituto Luce Archive from the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic games to the 1960 Olympic games in Rome. The research and production of these clips was curated by Erika Allegrucci.
Open Roads: New Italian Cinema has been organized by the Film Society of Lincoln Center together with Istituto Luce-Cinecittà – Filmitalia and the support of Ministero per i Beni e le Attivitá Culturali (Direzione Generale per il Cinema) in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute of New York. Special thanks to the Alexander Bodini Foundation, Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimó and Antonio Monda for their generous support.
