L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 2023 www.italoamericano.org 28 L'Italo-Americano O n Sunday, May 1 2 , 1 9 5 7 , t h e Ferrari driven by Alfonso de Portago went off the road during the his- toric Mille Miglia car race, running over and killing 11 spectators, including five children. The Spanish driver and his co-driver, American journalist Edmund Nelson, lost their lives on impact. A s t o r m s w e p t o v e r t h e c a r manufacturer and Enzo Fer- rari, who was later charged with manslaughter and per- sonal injury - he was subse- quently acquitted on July 26, 1961. This tragedy is the focus of the film Ferrari, which had i t s w o r l d p r e m i e r e a t t h e 80th Venice Film Festival. T h e m o v i e , d i r e c t e d by Michael Mann, will be released in US theaters on December 25. Alongside Adam Driver, who interprets Enzo Ferrari, and Penelope Cruz, in the role of his wife, Laura Ferrari, is Italian actor Giuseppe Bonifati. He plays Giacomo Cuoghi, Enzo Ferrari's manager and longtime friend, a key figure in his life as he was the one who advised the Modenese entrepreneur to participate in the Mille Miglia. T h e s c r e e n p l a y w h i c h Michael Mann co-wrote with the late Troy Kennedy Mar- t i n , i s i n s p i r e d b y B r o c k Yates' book Enzo Ferrari - The Man and the Machine. Mann, known for his work on Heat, Collateral, and The Last of the Mohicans, has been working on this project for about two decades. Bonifati is a multi-talented individual who works as an actor, author, director, and playwright. He is also fluent in six languages. Bonifati has previously worked on a Hol- lywood set, playing Giovanni Iacovoni in Ridley Scott's 2017 film All the Money in the World. Giuseppe, how did this work experience come about? There was an initial audi- tion, followed by a call-back in Rome where I met Michael Mann personally. I could tell it went well by the under- standing glances of the three casting directors. How did you prepare for the role? It is said that Giacomo C u o g h i a n d E n z o F e r r a r i were never on a first-name basis, even though they had been close friends since child- hood. Michael Mann gave me material about him, and I treasured it even though I then tried to find my own path to develop the character. The film does not have a doc- u m e n t a r y i n t e n t s o I h a d some liberties in building it. How did you feel act- ing alongside a giant like Adam Driver? A giant in every sense of the word! Adam Driver is very tall. I first saw him dur- ing the table-read, which felt for all intents and purposes like a first day of shooting because there were already microphones and cameras. The chairs were arranged with the names of our charac- ters, mine was between Adam Driver's and Penelope Cruz's. I was always comfortable with both of them during rehearsals. Very often, it was just us and Michael Mann. What did you absorb from actors of that cal- iber? Watching them act was like attending a real master- class. Besides the fact that Adam Driver is humble and affable. What kind of director is Michael Mann? I was impressed by a group scene with lots of extras in M o d e n a , i n f r o n t o f t h e Storchi Theater. It was more than 100 F. We did about 50 takes, we went on into the evening. Mann has this tech- nique that, in a way, is based on artistic exhaustion. He gets you where he wants you this way, because after a cer- tain number of rehearsals you release something different from the first few takes. What was Ridley Scott like instead? H e w a s m u c h m o r e instinctive. He would say, "Give me your lines," even before he started shooting the scene. Scott relies a lot on instinct, whereas Mann is very meticulous, punctilious. If he sees a hand in a pocket that doesn't fit, he notices it from 200 yards away. What difference have you found working for American directors ver- sus Europe? A m e r i c a n s h a v e a v e r y direct, very straightforward approach. There is no com- p l a c e n c y . E v e r y o n e s a y s Michael Mann is particular as a director, I found him very direct, he knows very well what he wants. He takes you in the direction he has set: in f a c t , y o u g o t o g e t h e r , h e guides you. You have almost exclu- sively scenes with Adam D r i v e r a n d a c o u p l e together with Penelope Cruz. How did it go with her? It was very pleasant with her as well, we spoke in Span- ish. The funny thing is that t h e r e w a s a g u y f r o m t h e crew, who was a big fan of Penelope Cruz, and he had a t a t t o o o f h e r . W h e n C r u z heard about it, she wanted to see it at all costs. He was so excited he almost fainted. G i u s e p p e , y o u w e r e born and raised in Cas- trovillari, Calabria, but you have been living and working in Denmark for almost 15 years. What brought you to Northern Europe? My wife, who is Hungari- an, and I, opened a theater in northern Denmark many, many years ago, and started our own company. Then, for t h e p a s t t h r e e y e a r s , w e moved to the south of the country and started a theater inside the airport in Billund, which is the city of Legos. We g o v e r y o f t e n o n t o u r i n Europe but also around the w o r l d , w e h a v e b e e n t o Venezuela, Costa Rica, Cali- fornia. The show is called Fly Me To... and it gets its name from the capitals we go to. Last October, we took our p l a y t o t h e S a n t a M o n i c a Playhouse in Los Angeles, which of course became Fly Me To LA. We stayed for two weeks on vacation and fell in love with it. Santa Monica has a soft spot in my heart. A t h e a t e r i n s i d e t h e airport? Y e s , i t i s u n i q u e i n t h e world: It's called The Flying Theater. The first two years were a kind of pilot project, during which we experiment- ed a lot. Now we are setting up a permanent theater so we can do shows there, because at the moment we do them at t h e g a t e s , a t t h e b a g g a g e arrival, and in the various ter- minals. We surprise passen- gers from all over the world with unique artistic experi- ences. In the beginning, we u s e d t o d o t h e m d u r i n g flights. How did you come up with this idea? I trained my head to create new and original ideas all the time. It's like training a mus- cle. I'm never satisfied so, as soon as I do something, I'm already thinking about what to do next. Would you like to have a career in the United States? In Los Angeles, we have contacts with the Santa Mon- ica airport where there is a reality of artists very interest- ed in our project. The goal, at the moment, is to come a couple of months a year and export the format. W h e n d i d y o u k n o w y o u w a n t e d t o b e a n actor? I never did anything else. I did modern dance from age 8 to 14. I got my first paid gig right in Castrovillari, thanks to a teacher who was a stu- dent of Alessandro Fersen, an Italian playwright, actor, and theater director. After that, I studied at the Civica Scuola Paolo Grassi in Milan and furthered my studies at the National Academy of Dra- matic Arts Silvio D'Amico in Rome. Then, as a playwright, I trained in northern Den- mark. Now, as I told you, I am very focused on our Fly- ing Theater. Just think that I even married my wife, who is the creative producer of the project, at the airport! SILVIA NITTOLI Italian actor Giuseppe Bonifati alongside Adam Driver in the Film "Ferrari" Italian actor Giuseppe Bonifati (above) plays alongside Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz in "Ferrari" (Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Bonifati) LIFE PEOPLE MOVIES MUSIC BOOKS

• Cover