San Francisco Film Society

New Italian Cinema

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New films by first-time directors with filmmakers, actors and others in attendance, the newest releases from renowned directors Pupi Avati and the late Tonino Cervi and a tribute to up-and-coming filmmaker Francesca Archibugi make up San Francisco’s best opportunity to see Italian film this year. Ranging from gritty, realistic drama to lighthearted comedy, this year’s films offer a cross-section of life in Italy today.

A Tribute to Francesca Archibugi

Tomorrow
Domani

In a small town in Umbria, a giant earthquake drives the residents from their homes and makes everyone rethink their lives. The deputy mayor (Marco Baliani) is in charge of holding the town together, but just holding his own family together becomes a challenge when it seems his wife (Ornella Muti) may be falling in love with the handsome young man (Valerio Mastandrea) who finds shelter with them. Two young girls, inseparable friends, now seem to drift apart. But in the end, the rich vein of benevolence that underlies the townspeople proves stronger than the divisive forces of nature. (106 min., 2000)

The Tree of Pears
L’albero delle pere

Archibugi’s knack for working with child actors was never used more effectively than in this drama of a 14-year-old boy, Siddhartha (Niccolò Senni), who steps into an adult’s role to save his five-year-old half-sister, Domitilla (Francesca di Giovanni). Domitilla has accidentally pricked herself with a dirty syringe while innocently poking through her heroin-addicted mother’s (Valeria Golino, in a virtuoso performance) things. Siddhartha must navigate a devious path through doctors, social workers and police so as not to expose his mother, a beautiful, well-meaning ne’er-do-well who has left a path of destruction in the lives of the two fathers and the two children who love her. (105 min., 1998)

OPENING NIGHT

There will be a Q&A session after the screening with director Pupi Avati and some very special guests.

Incantato
Il cuore altrove DIR Pupi Avati

The latest film from the master of soft-edged nostalgia, Pupi Avati (The Story of Boys and Girls, SFIFF 1990), is the story of a bookish young schoolteacher, Nello (Neri Marcorè), who falls hopelessly in love with a strikingly beautiful and wealthy blind woman (Vanessa Incontrada). She is soon revealed to be a manipulative femme fatale, but Nello’s love is blind too. The extraordinary widescreen cinematography, the 1920s period costumes, the lush music by Riz Ortolani and Avati’s surehanded storytelling make this a perfect Opening Night film. Avati won the David di Donatello award for best director. With Giancarlo Giannini, Sandra Milo, Nino d’Angelo. (103 min., 2003).

CITY OF FLORENCE COMPETITION Seven new films by first-time directors vie for the City of Florence Award, to be determined by your audience votes. The results will be announced at the Closing Night ceremony.

	Bell'Amico DIR Luca d'Ascanio Nicola (played by the director) is depressed over losing his girlfriend and anxious over a crucial upcoming civil service exam. One day, a friend brings over Mariano (Mariano Bartolomeu), a filmmaker from Angola, to stay a few days. As a few days of hospitality turn into a few months, the parasitic house guest from hell takes Nicola’s clothes and money. As if that weren’t enough, his obsessive nature leads him to videotape every moment in Nicola’s life. Eventually Mariano’s behavior goes too far, and becomes his downfall in this wry, comedic comment on the exploitative nature of storytellers and filmmakers. (82 min., 2003) Preceded by Playgirl, dir. Fabio Tagliavia (14 min., 2002)

I Am Emma
Emma sono io DIR Francesco Falaschi

Emma is the picture of the modern Italian woman: assured and accomplished, beautiful, a pediatrician and member of the city council. Always the center of attention, she invites a group of friends to her house in Tuscany for a friend’s wedding. Unfortunately, Emma forgets to bring her lithium, the only thing between her and her other, manic personality. In the ensuing comedy of errors, the old adage, “In vino, veritas,” could be replaced by, “Without medication, mayhem!” Delightful, hilarious, mayhem! (96 min., 2002). Preceded by The Crooked Nose (Il naso storto), dir. Antonio Ciano (15 min., 2003)

The Island
L'isola DIR Costanza Quatriglio

This charming coming-of-age story with its nonprofessional cast and slice-of-life immediacy lovingly observes the lives of fishermen and quarry workers on an island off the coast of Sicily, and sees a world with a rough life, but a noble work ethic. Teresa, a girl on the brink of adulthood, follows her slightly older brother, Turi, like a puppy, fascinated by the rituals of entering adulthood: working as a fisherman, drinking his first beer and developing a crush on a pretty new girl in town. Soon, Teresa gets a job and a sweetheart of her own. (103 min., 2003) Preceded by The Match (La partita), dir. Ursula Ferrara (5 min., 2002)

North Cape
Capo Nord DIR Carlo Luglio

Four headstrong, smart-alecky boys from Naples set off for north Germany to make some easy money. When the deal goes sour, instead of returning to the security of home, they plunge northward into even more adventuresome territory: Norway. They face a rude awakening when they gradually realize that mere survival will take every ounce of hard work and determination they’ve got, learning that the life of an undocumented immigrant worker is a crucible of true friendship and character. (102 min., 2002) Preceded by Portrait of a Child (Ritratto di un bambino), dir. Gianluca Iodice (13 min., 2002)

Pater Familias
DIR Francesco Patierno

A 30-year-old man, granted leave from prison for a few days to see his dying father, is consumed with thoughts of the past and his wayward friends who were once young and full of life. Through flashbacks he recalls senseless deaths, suicides, family violence, doomed love, acts of vengeance. He is now determined to turn revenge into redemption, if it’s not too late. This harsh look at life among juvenile delinquents from Giugliano, near Naples, stunned audiences at the Berlin Film Festival, but the truth of Patierno’s vision is compelling. (90 min., 2002) Preceded by Mud Red (Rosso fango), dir. Paolo Ameli (14 min., 2002)

Raining Cows
Piovono mucche DIR Luca Vendruscolo

When young Matteo and a group of friends become conscientious objectors, they are assigned to work in a home for severely disabled persons in the outskirts of Rome. In the underfunded, understaffed hospital, with its menagerie of odd characters, they spend their time in such idealistic pursuits as inserting catheters, cleaning bedpans and tolerating the antics of a bunch of cranky misfits. The films asks, Can a group of idealistic youths make a difference? Or will they be ground down by the indifference of the system and the resigned pessimism of its victims? (92 min., 2002) Preceded by The Last One Standing (L’ultimo rimasto in piedi), dir. Ugo Capolupo (15 min., 2001)

V-Max
Velocità massima DIR Daniele Vicari

In this unusual glimpse into small-town Italian car culture, Stefano (Valerio Mastandrea), a garage owner in Ostia, takes in an 18-year-old apprentice, Claudio (Cristiano Morroni), who turns out to be a mechanical whiz kid. Claudio’s gentle nature works not only with machines, but also with women, and he ignites jealousies in the macho world of drag racers. However, Stefano’s act of generosity turns into one of exploitation as the profligate garage owner uses the young genius as a meal ticket to success. (111 min., 2002) Preceded by In Tram, dir. Filippo Soldi (4 min., 2003)
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CLOSING NIGHT An exuberant evening of film and fine Italian cuisine! Join us for a screening of Tonio Cervi's final film, Antonia's Recipes, followed by the City of Florence Award presentation. Afterwards, mingle with visiting filmmakers at the Closing Night party, featuring a buffet dinner and Italian wines.

	CLOSING NIGHT Antonia's Recipes Il quaderno della spesa DIR Tonino Cervi On Closing Night we have another special treat, a bittersweet period drama, Tonino Cervi’s last film before his death in March of 2002. Living in a rural mansion in the picturesque Tuscan town of Lucca in the late 19th century, Augusto is a wealthy novelist who hires Antonia, a legendary local cook to be part of his household. When they fall in love and marry, the fiery, dark-haired beauty becomes his most ardent fan, a position difficult to sustain when adversity strikes and it is revealed that her famous recipe book is actually a piece of creative writing itself, full of family secrets and other forbidden treasures. With Gabriele Lavia, Emanuela Muni. (96 min., 2003)