L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 4 BARBARA MINAFRA NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS " W o r k i n g t o t h i s movie is already an Oscar to me. I don't even want to think a b o u t i t . I m e a n , t h e i d e a m a k e s m y h e a r t race. We'll see, we'll see, we'll see." Italy is already cheering its favorite movie icon, and pictures Roberto Benigni, s m i l i n g a n d e n t h r a l l i n g , shouting "Sophia!" from the s t a g e o f t h e A c a d e m y Awards. A way to return the favor and the happiness she gave him, 20 years ago, with that announcement, after which he stood and walked over the seats of the Dolby T h e a t r e , s h o w i n g a l l h i s uncontrollable enthusiasm. A t 8 6 , c h a r m i n g a n d always incredibly talented, Sophia Loren returned to t h e s i l v e r s c r e e n w i t h a great movie La Vita Davan- ti Sé — The Life Ahead. She — who was the first woman, in 1962 — to win an Oscar for Best Actress in spite of being in a foreign language movie (La Ciociara— Two Women)— would definitely deserve a third statuette. Thirty years ago, in 1991, she received her second, to h o n o r h e r e x t r a o r d i n a r y career. Sophia's return to cinema, enabled by her love f o r h e r s o n E d o a r d o Ponti, is a gift for us all. The movie looks ahead, with hope and humanity. Filmed between July and August 2019, when no one imagined what was about t o h a p p e n , i t t a k e s u s beyond the pandemic and s e n d s a m e s s a g e t o t h e w o r l d t o c o m e , t o t h e s o c i e t y t h a t w i l l d e v e l o p after this time of confine- ment, of social and physi- cal distancing that forces us away even from our loved ones. La Vita Davanti a Sé is about a society that learns to listen to itself, to under- stand itself and to support itself. "This movie has a message of tolerance, forgi- v e n e s s , l o v e . A l l o f u s — Loren explained — have the r i g h t t o b e s e e n a n d b e listened to. Otherwise, life is impossible. We all have the right to be loved and to see our dreams come true. All of us, all." Without differences of color, religion, social sta- tus, age. I n d e e d i n t h e m o v i e , a d a p t a t i o n o f R o m a i n G a r y ' s a w a r d - w i n n i n g novel, there are quite a few reasons for conflict: Mada- me Rosa is an elderly Jewi- s h e x - p r o s t i t u t e w h o , t o make ends meet, hosts diffi- cult children abandoned to their fate, of various ethnici- ties and religions, not really model kids. There are quar- rels and discussions, but lit- tle by little connections are c r e a t e d , f r i e n d s h i p a n d affection are born. There are i n v i s i b l e s c a r s , t a t t o o e d n u m b e r s t h a t r e f e r t o a painful past which is distant in time, but not emotional- ly. Yet, slowly everything is soothed by the feeling of " h o m e , " t h e m e a n i n g o f f a m i l y , t h e w a r m t h o f a hug, by the slightest touch, able to change things dee- ply. As Madame Rosa says, with compassion and tena- city "it's when you no longer believe in it, that the most beautiful things happen." Sophia Loren, here, cites her own mother Romilda: "my mother used to say it all t h e t i m e , w h e n s h e f e l t down and things seemed all dark and negative." On the screen, we see a young boy w h o l i v e s i n t h e s t r e e t , among prostitution, illegal immigration and crimina- lity. But it's in this difficult environment that Momo, i n t e r p r e t e d b y I b r a h i m a Gueye, learns important life lessons. "What begins as a tense relationship ready to explode turns into an unex- pected, heartfelt friendship. Rosa and Momo are diffe- rent in many ways: their culture, race, religion and generation are different, yet they realize to have things in common. These two souls — director Ponti, who stu- died at USC notes — are two faces of the same coin. They struggle through life, col- lecting pain and anguish, until they find in each other a common destiny, bound t o c h a n g e t h e i r l i v e s f o r ever." T h a t ' s w h a t t h e m o v i e teaches: to listen to oneself a n d u n d e r s t a n d w e a r e souls, more alike than what we believe. "La Vita Davanti a Sé — continues the 47 years old, who began his career with Michelangelo Antonioni and Robert Altman — is a poi- gnant modern tale of tole- rance and inclusion. In a world where many people escape from their fatherland to seek refuge and safety somewhere else, the journey of each and every migrant is different. Some only meet disillusion and desperation, others find hope and peace. The most common result is t h e e v o l u t i o n o f h o w w e consider ideas like home and family, ideas that are challenged and discussed a lot in the movie. And so, o u r y o u n g m i g r a n t f r o m Senegal learns that 'home' is not only the place where you were born, but also the one where you are accepted u n c o n d i t i o n a l l y . T h a t ' f a m i l y ' i s n o t s o l e l y t h e nucleus that brought you into this world, but also the people who give meaning to your life." L ' I t a l o - A m e r i c a n o met Loren on video-confe- rence. During the presenta- tion of the movie, out on N e t f l i x o n t h e 1 3 t h o f November, she kept protec- tively a hand on her son's shoulder. An affectionate, natural gesture, one that t a s t e s l i k e h o m e . A n d i n times such as these, when we all had to learn and keep our distance, it also delive- Sophia Loren and her son, Edoardo Ponti, on the set of La Vita Davanti a Sé. Photo: Regine de Lazzaris aka Greta/Netflix Continued to page 6 Sophia Loren: Italy cheers for her Oscar

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