L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2014 www.italoamericano.com L'Italo-Americano 5 The New Italian Cinema in San Francisco: what to expect from this year's edition Celebrating its 18th edition, the New Italian Cinema festival is back at Vogue Theatre in San Francisco, from November 19 until November 23. The festival is part of the San Francisco Film Society's Fall Season and will b r i n g t o g e t h e r e n t h u s i a s t i c movie lovers, especially inter- ested in the Italian young direc- tors. As the Film Society's pro- gram first started in the '90s, its f a m e h a s g r o w n o v e r t i m e , including the best of Italian and French Cinema. The Italian pro- gram, running since 1997, is not only the one with the longest history, but it has also kept the greatest popularity in the city. This year's edition will open with a double special event: Edoardo Ponti, son of producer Carlo Ponti and actress Sophia Loren, will feature his two short films, The Nightshift Belongs to the Stars and Human Voice. The first short movie tells the story o f t w o p e o p l e , M a t t e o a n d Sonia, with the same passion for mountains: after sharing the drama of a heart surgery, they keep the promise of scaling a m o u n t a i n i n t h e D o l o m i t e s , developing a special friendship. H u m a n V o i c e s h o w s a n Italian woman, Angela, during her last phone conversation with the man she loves, as he is going to leave her for another woman. The short movie is inspired by J e a n C o c t e a u ' s o n e - w o m a n monologue: Sophia Loren is Angela, whereas the man voice is never heard. Sophia Loren plays the same role as Anna Magnani in Roberto Rossellini's "L'amore" (1948). The Italian i c o n h a s r e v e a l e d t h a t , seeing Magnani's performance at the age of 14, prompted her to want to become an actress. Following the outstanding performance in the Oscar win- ner-movie The Great Beauty, Toni Servillo played the role of an Italian politician in Long Live Freedom. The movie has been d i r e c t e d b y R o b e r t o A n d ò , SERENA PERFETTO known assistant to Francesco Rosi, Federico Fellini, Michael C i m i n o , a n d F r a n c i s F o r d Coppola. The film, out of com- petition, is the story of Enrico, a party leader, who disappears just before a panel session. After having discovered the existence of a twin brother just out from a p s y c h i a t r i c c l i n i c , E n r i c o ' s assistant decides the twin will replace the politician in the pub- lic scene. Playing both main characters, Servillo proves, once again, his ability to perform dif- f e r e n t r o l e s , w i t h b r i l l i a n t expressions and attention to details. After hitting the Italian box- office in 2013, Director Paolo Genovese has put together both his humour and his knowledge of the Italian society in Blame Freud: Francesco, a psycholo- gist from Rome, has been left by his wife and needs now to deal with his three grown daughters. The women, going through dif- ferent paths of life, will end up asking their dad to counsel in the understanding of men. The perfect Italian comedy about life, love, and romance. The female side of the Italian cinema makes its appearance in San Francisco thanks to Asia Argento. Coming from a film- making family, the director from Rome made her debut as actress a t t h e a g e o f n i n e . S h e h a s w o r k e d w i t h N a n n i M o r e t t i , Michele Placido and, later on, with her father, Dario Argento. Her movie, Misunderstood, is the story of a young girl who suffers at the hands of her self- centred and neglectful parents. W h e n h e r p a r e n t s d i v o r c e , Aria's story crosses the one of a school friend, Angelica, as well as the relationship with a cat from the neighborhood. Asia Argento shined at dealing with the main character's sadness, without giving up on moments of humor to leaven the girl's story. T h e c l o s i n g n i g h t w i l l b e dedicated to Paolo Virzì, the Italian writer, director, and pro- ducer from Livorno: his latest movie, Human Capital, received Awards in different contests s u c h a s D a v i d d i D o n a t e l l o , Golden Globe, and Tribeca Film Festival. The story, set on Lake Como, starts when a cyclist is hit off the road by a jeep in the night before Christmas Eve. The d r a m a , i n s p i r e d b y S t e p h e n Amidon's Connecticut-set novel and made of three parts, tries to explore the Italian social classes and their privileges. A success- ful way to prove how, many times, financial status and social classes can take people to a low valuation of human life. T h e o t h e r m o v i e s t o b e streamed are: Controra - House o f S h a d o w s ( d i r e c t e d b y Rossella De Venuto); Per Ulisse (by Giovanni Cioni); Up to the w o r l d ( b y A l e s s a n d r o L u n a r d e l l i ) ; T h e A r t o f Happiness (by Alessandro Rak); The Medicine Seller (by Antonio Morabito); I can quit whenever I want (by Sydney Sibilia); In the s n o w ( b y S t e f a n o I n c e r t i ) ; Border (by Alessio Cremonini). For information, schedule, and t i c k e t s s a l e s , c h e c k t h e S a n Francisco Film Society website (http://www.sffs.org). Sophia Loren and her son Edoardo Ponti Sophia Loren playing Angela in "Human Voice" Toni Servillo in "Long Live Freedom" 650.400.4747 AdeleDS@aol.com www.AdeleDS.com BRE# 00911740 Certied Trust, Probate and Estate Specialist Expert in preparation, promotion, and negotiation! 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