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It’s actually wild that, even in the year 2025, we still haven’t fixed the issue of toxic masculinity. Instead, young men are being indoctrinated to be misogynistic and uphold patriarchal norms because feminism has apparently trampled men’s rights to be, well, manly. The most prominent front where this exercise to “reclaim” the status quo, where men can be allowed to be sexist without any consequences, is being carried out in the comments sections of social media and through podcasts. And in some extreme cases, it’s leading to real-life violence and death. Is that sparking any kind of introspection in the people that belong to that gender? Or are men doubling down on their pursuit to “go back to the old ways,” whatever that means? Well, if we see this situation through the lens of entertainment, one of the most popular shows of this year is Adolescence, which...

MetFilm Distribution has acquired UK-Ireland distribution rights to Silvio Soldini’s Second World War drama The Tastersfrom Italy’s Vision Distribution.

MetFilm will release the film in cinemas later this year.

Based on Rosella Postorino’s 2018 novel At The Wolf’s Table, The Tasters reconstructs the true story of the women coerced into being food tasters for Adolf Hitler towards the end of the Second World War.

Soldini wrote the screenplay with Doriana Leondeff, Cristina Comencini, Giulia Calenda, Ilaria Macchia and Lucio Ricca.

The film is produced by Lionello Cerri, Stefan Jager, Cristiana Mainardi, Katrin Renz and Joseph Rouschop for...

“There’s Still Tomorrow,” the stirring Italian box-office juggernaut of 2023, finally lands in American cinemas. Set in June 1946, just before Italian women first voted in elections, the beautifully crafted, slyly funny, black-and-white feminist dramedy looks at the resilience of an abused, working-class housewife in post-war Rome. It marks the audacious feature directing debut of talented multi-hyphenate Paola Cortellesi, who not only stars but also co-wrote the tight script with Furio Andreotti and Giulia Calenda. It sounds paradoxical to say that a film depicting violence against women is exhilarating, but the film’s handling of those scenes along with its adroit shifts in tone and top quality on every cinematic level make it something very special.

A critical as well as popular favorite, “There’s Still Tomorrow” debuted at the Rome Film Festival in 2023, where it nabbed three prizes, including the audience award. Since then, the film and its universal message of female...

Shot in radiant black and white and set in post-World War II Rome, Paola Cortellesi’s There’s Still Tomorrow is a darkly comedic drama about the experiences of one woman, Delia Santucci (Cortellesi), trapped in an abusive marriage. It’s a film about domestic violence that, while clearly intended as an homage to Italian neorealism, finds levity through choreographed musical numbers and moments of light magical realism.

The story begins with Delia’s husband, Ivano (Valerio Mastandrea), slapping her after she wishes him a good morning inside the cramped apartment they share with their children and Ivano’s bedridden father, Ottorino (Giorgio Colangeli). We see from the onset that Delia is treated like a maid, as she gets scolded by Ivano and Ottorino for her domestic shortcomings. Through it all, Marcella (Romana Maggiora Vergano), Delia’s teenage daughter, resents her mother’s helplessness. Set to a nostalgic song about Delia’s daily routine,...

Netflix presented its first international showcase yesterday with a look at what is coming down down the pike. Below is a preview of what’s on deck for feature films. Of note, was the title announcement and treatment of the Japanese movie Bullet Train Explosion. Also made a official was Troll 2, the sequel to the streamer’s most watched non-English language film from Norway. Roar Uthaug returns to the director’s chair.

Also of note, the streamer dated the Mexican movie Los Dos Hemisferios de Lucca from Marina Chenillo for Jan. 31 next year.

Not made official by the streamer was a part two to their widely watched shark movie of 102.3M viewers, Under Paris, from director Xavier Gens and starring Oscar nominated The Artist actress, Bérénice Bejo.

Related: Shah Rukh Khan & Netflix Ready Series Set In Bollywood Film Industry

Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria announced the slate at...

The acclaimed Italian television drama series “La Storia” has signed agreements to expand its international distribution significantly. Based on Elsa Morante’s landmark 1974 novel, the World War II series is streamlining in North America through U.S. and Canadian distribution with MHz Choice. Dual deals in Israel with Yes and Hot networks were also reached. Earlier partnerships were made with several Nordic broadcasters. Beta Film handles global distribution for the series.

The series tells the story of Ida Ramundo, a Jewish widow living in Rome during and after World War II with her two sons. Actress Jasmine Trinca stars as Ida. An ensemble cast of renowned Italian performers bring the production to life, including Asia Argento, Elio Germano, and Valerio Mastandrea.

Director Francesca Archibugi adapted the screenplay from the novel along with writers Francesco Piccolo, Giulia Calenda, and Ilaria Macchia. Picomedia and Thalie Images produce the series in partnership with broadcasters Rai Fiction and Beta.

Exclusive: Italian drama ‘La Storia’ has been picked up for the U.S. and Israel. The series, adapted from the iconic Elsa Morante bestseller, is set in Rome during and soon after World War II. It stars Jasmine Trinca (The Gunman) in the lead role.

MHz Choice, the SVOD service that majors in bringing prestige international television to North American viewers, has acquired it for the U.S. and Canada. Elsewhere, Yes and Hot have picked it up for Israel. Beta Film is handling distribution and cut the deals. It has already sold it to Nrk in Norway, Yle in Finland, Svt in Sweden, Dr in Denmark and Ruv in Iceland.

The series is set during World War II and its immediate aftermath. It turns on the story of a Jewish woman, Ida Ramundo, a widowed mother living in Rome, and her two sons. The book was first published in...

Netflix’s hit Spanish comedy series “Machos Alfa,” “Alpha Males” in English, got the green light for a fourth season in Spain and a fourth international adaptation in Germany, joining other in-production adaptations of the show in France, the Netherlands and Italy.

“Machos Alfa” is the story of four middle-aged friends experiencing midlife crises in parallel as they attempt to adapt to modern sensibilities regarding masculinity. It was created and is written by Alberto and Laura Caballero, Spanish sitcom royalty who both worked on the iconic series “Aquí no hay quien viva” and “La que se avecina.”

The series launched in December 2022 and quickly became one of Spain’s most popular comedy series, where it ranked in Netflix’s top 10 for 13 weeks. Season 2 launched in February of this year, and Season 3 recently wrapped production, although no release date has been announced yet.

Germany’s version of “Machos Alfa,” which is currently untitled,...

Netflix is putting toxic masculinity under the comedy microscope.

The streamer has ordered Maschi Veri, an eight-part comedy series from Italy in which four alpha male friends in their forties find themselves facing their own prejudices and the paradigms of toxic masculinity in a world that is moving towards social and gender equality. Without losing themselves, they are forced to rediscover their place in society and their relationships.

Maurizio Lastrico, Matteo Martari, Francesco Montanari and Pietro Sermonti star as the friends in the show, which is from Banijay’s Italian drama house Groenlandia. Furio Andreotti, Giulia Calenda and Ugo Ripamonti are the writers, with Groenlandia’s Matteo Rovere producing. Matteo Oleotto and Letizia Lamartire are directing.

Thony, Sarah Felberbaum, Laura Adriani, Alice Lupparelli, Corrado Fortuna and Nicole Grimaudo complete the cast. Show is slated for a 2025 launch.

For Netflix, the series is its latest out of Italy that explores contemporary masculinity.

Matteo Garrone’s Oscar-nominated drama “Io Capitano,” about the odyssey of two young African men who decide to leave Dakar to reach Europe, and Paola Cortellesi’s feminist dramedy “There’s Still Tomorrow” were both the big winners at Italy’s 69th David di Donatello Awards.

“Io Capitano” won Davids for best picture, director, producers, editor, and cinematographer, among other prizes, while “Still Tomorrow,” which is about the plight of an abused housewife in post-war Rome and had 19 nominations scored six statuettes, including best directorial debut, actress, non supporting actress, screenplay, and audience award.

“Still Tomorrow,” which marks the directorial debut of popular Italian actor Paola Cortellesi, who also stars, is shot in black-and-white and riffs on Italy’s neorealist past, albeit with a contemporary female empowerment angle.

“I made this debut at the brink of menopause,” Cortellesi, who is 50, said while accepting the statuette for best debuting director. “I hope...

Matteo Garrone’s refugee drama Io Capitano, an Oscar nominee this year for Italy in the best international feature category, was the big winner of this year’s 2024 David Di Donatello Awards, Italy’s equivalent to the Oscars, winning best film and director for Garrone.

Io Capitano also picked up prizes for best cinematography, editing, sound, and visual effects.

Paola Cortellesi’s There’s Still Tomorrow, a black-and-white feminist dramedy that became the top-grossing film in Italy last year, won Cortellesi the Donatello honors for best actress, directorial debut, and original script for the screenplay she co-wrote with Furio Andreotti and Giulia Calenda.

“I want to thank those who gave me the opportunity to write this role as I wanted it,” she said, accepting her actress honor.

Cortellesi’s film, a dramedy about an abused woman in post-wwii Rome that manages to combine serious social drama with situational comedy, sight gags and even a musical number,...

Matteo Garrone’s Oscar-nominated drama Io Capitano triumphed in Italy’s David di Donatello film awards on Friday evening, winning best film and best director.

The film about the trials and tribulations of two Senegalese teenagers as they try to make it to Europe via the Sahara desert and the Mediterranean Sea, also won best producer for companies Archimede, Rai cinema, Pathé and Tarantula as well as best sound, special effects, cinematography and editing.

Io Capitano premiered at the Venice Film Festival last September, where it won best director for Garrone and the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actor for Seydou Sarr.

The movie went on to enjoy a buzzy awards season, securing a Golden Globe nomination for best non-English language film and an Academy Award nomination for best international film.

“This film tells the stories of those who are not listened to,” said Garrone, on receiving the best director award.

Italian actress and screenwriter Paola Cortellesi’s directorial feature debut, There’s Still Tomorrow (C’è Ancora Domani), and Matteo Garrone’s Io Capitano lead nominations at this year’s David Di Donatello Awards.

There’s Still Tomorrow nabbed 19 noms, including best film while Io Capitano landed 15, including best director for Garrone. Trailing the leading two is Alice Rohrwacher’s latest film, La Chimera, starring Josh O’Connor. Other leading films are Rapito (11), Comandante (10), Il Sol Dell’avvenire (7), and Adagio (5).

The 69th David di Donatello Awards take place May 3. The live show will be broadcast on Rai 1 in Italy. This year’s hosts include Carlo Conti and Alessia Marcuzzi. The ceremony will take place at the legendary Cinecittà studios.

Check out the full list of nominees below:

Best Film

C’È Ancora DOMANIprodotto da Mario Gianani e Lorenzo Gangarossa per Wildside società del gruppo Fremantle; Vision Distribution società del gruppo Sky; in collaborazione...

It is the film that just keeps on delivering in Italy. Paola Cortellesi’s smash hit There’s Still Tomorrow (C’è Ancora Domani) returned to cinemas in Italy for International Women’s Day on March 8, taking €137,000 to finish in second place at the box office behind Dune: Part Two.

The post-war comedy drama has now taken $39.8m (€36.6m) since its release by Vision Distribution on October 26, 2023, after its premiere opening the Rome Film Festival. There’s Still Tomorrow was the top film at the Italian box office in 2023, ahead of Barbie (€32.1m) and Oppenheimer (€27.9m). It is also the first Italian film...

The post-war feminist feature marks the directorial debut of Italian actor Paola Cortellesi.

The highest-grossing film at the Italian box office in 2023 will likely end up being Greta Gerwig’s Barbie. But a local back-and-white feature will lead the way when it comes to admissions.

There’s Still Tomorrow, a post-war feminist drama comedy that marks the directorial debut of popular Italian actress Paola Cortellesi, has taken $34m (€30.9m) since its release by Vision Distribution on October 26 – behind the $35.3m (€32.1m) grossed by Warner Bros tentpole Barbie following its release in July.

But when it comes to admissions, There’s Still Tomorrow...

The Rome Film Fest, which is currently underway, is taking movies to screens all over the Eternal City, including jails, housing projects and a suburban park with two enormous ancient aqueducts.

While the event’s 18th edition – the core component of which runs Oct. 18-29 – is drawing record-breaking crowds at the Renzo Piano-designed auditorium, screenings are also taking place in various other venues, including a program of fresh movies and talks being held in local penitentiaries.

On Wednesday, Rome’s opener “There’s Still Tomorrow,” a feminist dramedy that marks the directorial debut of popular Italian actor Paola Cortellesi is playing in the women’s ward of Rome’s maximum security Rebibbia jail with screenwriters Giulia Calenda and Furio Andreotti in tow to introduce the screening. On Thursday, a first work titled “Troppo Azzurro,” about a 25-year-old named Dario who still lives with his parents and frets about his first date,...

Beta Film has announced a half-dozen sales to European public broadcasters on high-end period drama “La Storia,” which is Italian pubcaster Rai’s biggest event show of the year and is world premiering at the Rome Film Fest.

The sweeping eight-episode saga, set in Italy during the final years of World War II and its immediate aftermath, is based on a globally bestselling novel by the late great Elsa Morante, whom “My Brilliant Friend” author Elena Ferrante often cites as her primary literary reference.

Set mostly in Rome between 1940 and 1948, “La Storia” looks at fascism and Italy’s early postwar period through a female prism. Ida, a half Jewish widow with a teenage son named Nino, is raped by a drunken German soldier and gets pregnant with Useppe. The tale is centered on how she survives her predicament.

Ahead of the Rome Film Fest premiere of its first two episodes on Friday,...

Italian actress and screenwriter Paola Cortellesi’s directorial feature debut There’s Still Tomorrow (C’è Ancora Domani) opened the 18th Rome Film Festival on Wednesday evening.

Set in the lead up to Italy’s historic post-World War Two institutional referendum on June 2, 1946, in which women were allowed to vote for the first time, the quirky black-and-white work mixes drama with comedy elements, and a period feel with modern music tracks.

Cortellesi stars as protagonist Delia, a downtrodden Rome housewife run ragged by her violent husband (Valerio Mastandrea) and unruly young sons as she juggles odd jobs in between cooking, cleaning as and caring for her misogynist bedridden father-in-law.

In the backdrop, she frets over what the future holds for her teenage daughter who has fallen for a local boy with a possessive streak.

The feature marks a departure for Cortellesi, who is a household name in Italy, best known as a singer and comic actress,...

Comencini’s feature credits include Venice competition titles ’Don’t Tell’ (2005) and ’When The Night’ (2011).

Netflix has added two original features and two scripted series to its Italian slate.

The slate includes the latest film from Italian director and screenwriter Cristina Comencini, whose feature credits include Venice competition titles Don’t Tell (2005) and When The Night (2011). Produced by Palomar, Il Treno Dei Bambini, is based on the book by Viola Ardone and is billed as a journey through the misery but also the generosity witnessed in postwar Italy, as seen through the eyes of a child torn between two mothers.

The feature is written by Furio Andreotti,...

Netflix’s next Italian originals will be pairs of series and feature films from the likes of Stefano Mordini, Alessandro Genovesi and Cristina Comencini.

The projects were unveiled at a See What’s Next event in Rome today, in front of several stars, directors and stars.

Tinny Andreatta, Vice President of Italian Content at Netflix, said the orders showed the streamer remains “committed to our investment in Italy and Italian stories with conviction, continuing our long-term commitment to the country and its creative community.” Netflix opened an Italian office in May last year.

Namely, pics are Cristina Comencini’s Il Treno dei Bambini and Fabbricante di Lacrime from director Alessandro Genovesi. TV shows comprise Storia della mia Famiglia and Adorazione.

Il Treno dei Bambini is based on Viola Ardone’s bestselling novel pf the same name and is billed as as an “epic and poignant film” set in post-war Italy...

Veteran Italian auteur Silvio Soldini is set to direct “The Tasters,” which will reconstruct the true untold story of the women conscripted to be Adolf Hitler’s food tasters.

The Nazi-era drama — which will mark Soldini’s first foray into German-language cinema — is based on the bestselling book “At the Wolf’s Table,” by Italian author Rosella Pastorino, about a group of women who were recruited by the SS in 1943 to make sure that food to be served to Hitler was not poisoned. Forced to eat what might kill them, the tasters start to split into two factions: those loyal to Hitler, and those who insist they aren’t Nazis, even as they risk their lives everyday for the Führer. “At the Wolf’s Table” has been translated in 46 countries.

Vision distribution is launching international sales in Cannes on “The Tasters,” which is eying a fall- winter 2023 production start. The...

On a cobblestone-paved square in the ancient town of Tivoli, north-east of Rome, in late September, a large crew is prepping to shoot a key scene in Italian period drama “La Storia,” which will be pubcaster Rai’s biggest event show next year.

Based on a bestselling novel by the late great Elsa Morante – whom “My Brilliant Friend” author Elena Ferrante often cites as her primary literary reference – “La Storia” is set during the final years of World War II and its immediate aftermath in Italy.

The eight-episode series, being unveiled by Beta Film to buyers at Rome’s Mia content market, stars Italian A-list actor Jasmine Trinca – who earlier this year was a member of the Cannes jury – as Ida, a single mother of two sons, who hides her Jewish heritage and fights against poverty and persecution.

The Tivoli square, where costumed extras are taking their positions, is a...

Beta Film has come on board to co-produce eight-part Italian period drama series “La Storia,” based on Elsa Morante’s bestselling novel, continuing its successful partnership with Picomedia. Shooting for the production has started in Rome under the helm of director Francesca Archibugi (“Romanzo famigliare”), before moving to Naples and Lazio later in the year. Beta handles world sales.

The cast is led by Jasmine Trinca (“The Gunman”), starring as Ida, a single mother of two sons, who hides her Jewish heritage and fights against poverty and persecution during the end of World War II and post-war Rome. Also starring are Asia Argento (“xXx – Triple X”), Elio Germano (“Leopardi”) and Valerio Mastandrea (“Perfect Strangers”).

The series adapts one of the most critically acclaimed novels of the 20th century, published in two dozen languages. Morante is a landmark figure of feminist literature and the literary role model of Italian star author Elena Ferrante,...

ROME -- Two years after her Oscar nomination for "Don't Tell," Cristina Comencini has opted for humor rather than melodrama in examining modern problems in her native Italy. Black and White, her ninth film (and first since the death of her father, Luigi, a beacon of Italian cinema), is a social comedy being referred to as a kind of contemporary, Italian "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" Italy is only now dealing with racial issues that have been present for decades in many other European countries (most notably, France and Great Britain) and beyond.

The film should strike a chord with self-declared progressives and liberals of all cultures, who should recognize that we have far to go in dismantling deeply rooted bigotry.

All married couple Elena (Ambra Angiolini) and Carlo (actor/writer/television personality Fabio Volo) have in common is the color of their skin (white) and their 6-year-old daughter. Elena comes from a wealthy family and is dedicated to her job at an African aid organization. Carlo comes from a more modest background and is a computer engineer sick and tired of campaigns against world hunger.

Then Carlo meets Nadine (Aissa Maiga of Bamako), the dissatisfied wife of one of Elena's colleagues (Eriq Ebouaney of Hitman). Their love at first sight wreaks havoc upon their marriages and, more importantly, brings to light a series of prejudices and cliches from the betrayed spouses. (Maiga and Ebouaney are originally from Senegal and Cameroon, respectively, and are respected actors in their adopted country, France.)

Defying political correctness, the film written by Comencini, Giulia Calenda and Maddalena Ravagli chooses not to focus on Italy's poorest (and most numerous) immigrants but on the underlying racism in wealthier, more progressive circles. Here the deepest cut comes not so much from betrayal but the color of one's rival -- in other words, not adultery but sexuality shared with the "other."

However, the writers don't seem to know where their characters' destinies are ultimately headed: Will tradition and cultural pressure win over desire? Thus, they have created a double ending that apparently was rewritten and re-shot several times. Although somewhat confused, the second ending drives home the point that disrupted lives can't be remade as easily as a hotel bed after a night of passion (a scene that serves as a spot-on metaphor in a film that otherwise relies too heavily on dialogue).

Rising screen star Angiolini (the singer-turned-actress of Saturno Contro) is given the most complex role in Elena, who, according to Nadine, feels a burden of guilt. Nadine presumes correctly: Elena grew up in a household with a black maid forced to wear a white apron. Yet Elena's legacy is that of an upper-class family to whom, as in the case of her womanizing father (Franco Branciaroli), loving Africa means collecting trophies, such as objects from endless safaris and in one instance a black lover.

The entire cast is strong and tight and the Italian spoken by French actors Maiga and Ebouaney is impressive indeed, yet it is Anna Bonaiuto who stands out for her temperament and comic timing. The veteran screen and stage star plays Elena's mother, Adua, herself a betrayed wife and a woman full of stereotypes. "They really do have rhythm in their blood," she says while watching Nadine's daughter dance.

And it would be nice to think that her name was no coincidence: the Battle of Adua in the 19th century was the harshest colonial defeat in Italian history.

BLACK AND WHITE

Cattleya, RAI Cinema

Credits:

Director: Cristina Comencini

Screenwriters: Cristina Comencini, Giulia Calenda, Maddalena Ravagli

Producers: Riccardo Tozzi, Giovanni Stabilini, Marco Chimenz

Director of photography: Fabio Cianchetti

Production designer: Paola Comencini

Costume designer: Antonella Berardi

Editor: Cecilia Zanuso

Cast:

Carlo: Fabio Volo

Elena: Ambra Angiolini

Nadine: Aissa Maiga

Bertrand: Eriq Ebouaney

Adua: Anna Bonaiuto

Alfonso: Franco Branciaroli

Olga: Katia Ricciarelli

Esmeralda: Teresa Saponangelo

Running time -- 102 minutes

No MPAA rating...

VENICE -- Cristina Comencini's multilayered drama Don't Tell is a refreshingly insightful look at the lingering impact of child abuse, a subject that has been dealt with in all too many trite and exploitive television shows and feature films.

The well-crafted screenplay by Francesca Marciano, Giulia Calenda and Comencini, based on a novel by the director, explores how a brother and sister deal with their grown-up recollections of being abused by their late father.

The film, which screened In Competition at the Venice International Film Festival, goes beyond the fate of Sabina (Giovanna Mezzogiorgno) and Daniele Luigi Lo Cascio) to include their lovers, friends and children.

Powerfully moving but laced with incisive wit, Don't Tell has terrific performances with a wise tone and polished look that should find appreciative audiences well beyond art houses.

There is a Richard Curtis feel to the intertwining relationships although the subject matter is handled with a depth way beyond the shallow waters of Four Weddings and a Funeral or Notting Hill.

Sabina's nightmares begin after she arranges for her father's cremation and while she wants a baby with her genial actor lover Franco (Alessio Boni), the reality of it spins her into an emotional trauma. Seeking answers, she flies to America to see her older brother Daniele, but she quickly sees in his awkward dealings with his own children that he has been traumatized too.

There are searing scenes that leave Sabina with some answers but no resolution and when she returns to Italy, her pregnancy becomes the nucleus of all her fears. Her friends, Emilia (Stefania Rocca), who is gay and blind, and Maria (Angela Finocchiaro), who is divorced and lonely, lend their support and develop an unlikely liaison themselves.

Franco's director (Giuseppe Battiston) also plays an important role as the characters deal with their own failings and strengths, helping each other to find a kind of love that is understanding and forgiving.

VENICE -- Cristina Comencini's multilayered drama "Don't Tell" is a refreshingly insightful look at the lingering impact of child abuse, a subject that has been dealt with in all too many trite and exploitive television shows and feature films.

The well-crafted screenplay by Francesca Marciano, Giulia Calenda and Comencini, based on a novel by the director, explores how a brother and sister deal with their grown-up recollections of being abused by their late father.

The film, which screened In Competition at the Venice International Film Festival, goes beyond the fate of Sabina (Giovanna Mezzogiorgno) and Daniele Luigi Lo Cascio) to include their lovers, friends and children.

Powerfully moving but laced with incisive wit, "Don't Tell" has terrific performances with a wise tone and polished look that should find appreciative audiences well beyond art houses.

There is a Richard Curtis feel to the intertwining relationships although the subject matter is handled with a depth way beyond the shallow waters of "Four Weddings and a Funeral" or "Notting Hill".

Sabina's nightmares begin after she arranges for her father's cremation and while she wants a baby with her genial actor lover Franco (Alessio Boni), the reality of it spins her into an emotional trauma. Seeking answers, she flies to America to see her older brother Daniele, but she quickly sees in his awkward dealings with his own children that he has been traumatized too.

There are searing scenes that leave Sabina with some answers but no resolution and when she returns to Italy, her pregnancy becomes the nucleus of all her fears. Her friends, Emilia (Stefania Rocca), who is gay and blind, and Maria (Angela Finocchiaro), who is divorced and lonely, lend their support and develop an unlikely liaison themselves.

Franco's director (Giuseppe Battiston) also plays an important role as the characters deal with their own failings and strengths, helping each other a kind of love that is understanding and forgiving.

A boxoffice hit in Italy when it opened in April, five months later The Best Day of My Life is the surprise winner of the Grand Prix of Americas, top prize at the Montreal World Film Festival. While a crowd-pleaser and obviously appealing to the jury, Life was one of three Italian films in competition and was hardly universally loved. Most likely its win here will not increase the drama's lackluster commercial destiny beyond southern Europe.

Centered around a family struggling to cope with itself, with much of the action taking place in the villa of the domineering widowed grandmother, Life is talky, overloaded with narration and mostly so overlit it's distracting. Three grown-up siblings are messily working through life issues, with lovers, hapless husbands and children caught in the shifting currents.

Alas, it's possible to not develop a burning interest in Rita (Sandra Ceccarelli), who hasn't had sex with her husband (Marco Baliani) since she had a second daughter. Rita starts to fall for a younger man (Jean Hughes Anglade). Then there's her older sister Sara (Margherita Buy), who compensates for being a depressed widow by fretting over her son (Francesco Scianna).

Of primary concern is whether the young man will turn out to be another Claudio Luigi Lo Cascio), Rita and Sara's gay brother, who has not come out to the entire family. The sisters are not heartless, just typically self-absorbed. There's one scene that vibrantly captures the milieu. In a dog-related case of kismet, Claudio's lover (Marco Quaglia) wanders onto the villa and is discovered by Irene (Virna Lisi), the aging matriarch who spends a lot of time remembering the glories of the past, when the family was together all the time.

Irene insists that the young man stay for dinner, with Claudio put in the awkward position of having to treat him like a stranger, until Irene's opinions about gays and just about everything else causes the meal to break up. From then on, things get better for Claudio, but there's little beyond good acting, some situational comedy and occasional snappy dialogue to keep one's attention focused.

Directed with minimal flair by Cristina Comencini, also a novelist, and co-written by her with Giulia Calenda and Lucilla Schiaffino, Life weirdly turns arty with several sex scenes near the conclusion that practically insert the camera between participants. It's hardly a joyful release.

Ultimately, the film becomes a predictable, heady melodrama fixated on Italian family values that tries to win approval with its universal themes. But for some, it will be a fruitless task to sit through.

THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE

Cattleya, Rai Cinema

Credits:

Director: Cristina Comencini

Screenwriters: Cristina Comencini, Giulia Calenda, Lucilla Schiaffino

Producers: Riccardo Tozzi, Marco Chimenz, Giovanni Stabilini

Director of photography: Fabio Cianchetti

Production designer: Paola Comencini

Editor: Cecilia Zanuso

Costume designer: Antonella Berardi

Music: Franco Piersanti

Cast:

Irene: Virna Lisi

Sara: Margherita Buy

Carlo: Marco Baliani

Claudio: Luigi Lo Cascio

Rita: Sandra Ceccarelli

Marco: Francesco Scianna

Davide: Jean Hughes Anglade

Sandro: Ricky Tognazzi

Luca: Marco Quaglia

Running time -- 102 minutes

No MPAA rating...

A boxoffice hit in Italy when it opened in April, five months later "The Best Day of My Life" is the surprise winner of the Grand Prix of Americas, top prize at the Montreal World Film Festival. While a crowd-pleaser and obviously appealing to the jury, "Life" was one of three Italian films in competition and was hardly universally loved. Most likely its win here will not increase the drama's lackluster commercial destiny beyond southern Europe.

Centered around a family struggling to cope with itself, with much of the action taking place in the villa of the domineering widowed grandmother, "Life" is talky, overloaded with narration and mostly so overlit it's distracting. Three grown-up siblings are messily working through life issues, with lovers, hapless husbands and children caught in the shifting currents.

Alas, it's possible to not develop a burning interest in Rita (Sandra Ceccarelli), who hasn't had sex with her husband (Marco Baliani) since she had a second daughter. Rita starts to fall for a younger man (Jean Hughes Anglade). Then there's her older sister Sara (Margherita Buy), who compensates for being a depressed widow by fretting over her son (Francesco Scianna).

Of primary concern is whether the young man will turn out to be another Claudio Luigi Lo Cascio), Rita and Sara's gay brother, who has not come out to the entire family. The sisters are not heartless, just typically self-absorbed. There's one scene that vibrantly captures the milieu. In a dog-related case of kismet, Claudio's lover (Marco Quaglia) wanders onto the villa and is discovered by Irene (Virna Lisi), the aging matriarch who spends a lot of time remembering the glories of the past, when the family was together all the time.

Irene insists that the young man stay for dinner, with Claudio put in the awkward position of having to treat him like a stranger, until Irene's opinions about gays and just about everything else causes the meal to break up. From then on, things get better for Claudio, but there's little beyond good acting, some situational comedy and occasional snappy dialogue to keep one's attention focused.

Directed with minimal flair by Cristina Comencini, also a novelist, and co-written by her with Giulia Calenda and Lucilla Schiaffino, "Life" weirdly turns arty with several sex scenes near the conclusion that practically insert the camera between participants. It's hardly a joyful release.

Ultimately, the film becomes a predictable, heady melodrama fixated on Italian family values that tries to win approval with its universal themes. But for some, it will be a fruitless task to sit through.

THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE

Cattleya, Rai Cinema

Credits:

Director: Cristina Comencini

Screenwriters: Cristina Comencini, Giulia Calenda, Lucilla Schiaffino

Producers: Riccardo Tozzi, Marco Chimenz, Giovanni Stabilini

Director of photography: Fabio Cianchetti

Production designer: Paola Comencini

Editor: Cecilia Zanuso

Costume designer: Antonella Berardi

Music: Franco Piersanti

Cast:

Irene: Virna Lisi

Sara: Margherita Buy

Carlo: Marco Baliani

Claudio: Luigi Lo Cascio

Rita: Sandra Ceccarelli

Marco: Francesco Scianna

Davide: Jean Hughes Anglade

Sandro: Ricky Tognazzi

Luca: Marco Quaglia

Running time -- 102 minutes

No MPAA rating...