The Cardboard Village

One of the genuine masters of the Italian cinema, Ermanno Olmi (The Tree of Wooden Clogs) returns with this striking parable about the defense of faith in a world posed to deny it. An old church is scheduled for demolition: the paintings have been taken off the walls, the sacred objects put away, and a giant, mechanical arm starts to take down the life-size crucifix that hangs over the altar. Yet, despite seeing the destruction of a place in which he has devoted so much of his life, the old priest (Michael Lonsdale, in a beautiful performance) feels a certain joy, for stripped of all its decorations the building has returned to its true nature as a meeting place for humanity and the Divine, where the poor and the desperate can find a haven. As so often in his work, Olmi—who recently celebrated his 80th birthday—starts with a philosophical or spiritual themes and then fashions a story that gives these themes a powerful, very contemporary relevance.

This screening will be preceded by an Olympic clip fropm the Instituto Luce Archive:
Prego, Sorrida! – 10/1960
Olympic strategems
(Caleidoscopio Ciac 1242)