Casomai

Casomai opens with a young couple driving to a chapel somewhere in the hills to arrange to be married there. They meet the priest, who steals every scene he is in, and the ceremony is arranged. At the ceremony, the priest draws out of the couple and their friends and families their stories, told in flashbacks and flashforwards. We see the course of the couple's relationship through newly-married times, the birth of their first child, and onwards. Will the marriage survive the pressures of friends and family, of work, of child-care, of financial worries, and of cooling passion?

The movie starts promisingly, with the priest being the most interesting character. But once the movie concentrates on the couple, I found my interest and sympathy waning as their relationship became more unhappy. The movie might appeal if you delight in sharing other people's problems, but after about an hour I found myself wondering how much more I had to endure. I found the ending quite weak. I gave the movie 5 out of 10--neutral--the clever parts offsetting the flat parts.

I loved this movie and I happened to watch it twice in 2 months, in 2002. I already liked Stefania Rocca, but I didn't think Fabio Volo would have been a great actor (telling from his previous TV shows). Instead he was. And so was the priest. The soft simplicity with which the movies explores a whole love story, starting from the beginning, growing to the climax and then facing ever-increasing difficulties, to reach the final break... was really special. Some moments are really enjoyable, and some other moments will make you cry, as you are pulled, along with the 2 wed characters, into deep troubles, feeling love that vanishes minute after minute and, actually, without really knowing "why" they're not in love anymore.

I'd say 9 stars out of 10, even if I may understand that, to non-italian people, it may loose some of its beauty.

I was very pleased to go and see a "Milanese" film shot in Milan. Alessandro Alatri is a Roman director who has understood properly and fortunately printed in a film the Milanese philosophy.

Film tells the story of a standard -in career- Milanese couple, starting from "the birth" to the death. The birth-wedding is so typical out of any scheme that becomes original and involves all the wedding guests in a flash back story of how the couple came to each other and felt in love. Life is hard in the "urbe" of Milan and after the sweeties old days became tougher and tougher, then finally the product: a child, who instead of strengthen further the couple relationship it weaken because "the selfish effect" typical of a nowadays "metropolis" personality. The advertising environment with all the "creative" under stress atmosphere helps to get well involved in the plot. We are losing the life values and this is well and deeply reflected in this nice and sharp movie from the Senza Pelle's director.

The actors are well chosen, Stefania Rocca nice and well characterised, and a positive surprise, an unexpected good Fabio Volo, well known by the "trash" TV serie: Le Iene.

Rating: 7/10

"Casomai" is a masterful tale depicting the story of a young couple who wade through the murky waters of marriage. The story is very believable in telling the strange see-saw between oblivion and continuous interference by others, which is fairly typical in Italy (one may wonder whether such happenings are different elsewhere, though). Pavignano and D'Alatri were very good at writing, and that is one of the strong points of the movie. Acting by Stefania Rocca and Fabio Volo is sober and gripping. And the figure of the sympathetic priest is funny and well-rounded. All in all, a truly deserving movie, probably one of the best Italian movies of the year.

This is the one movie to see if you are to wed or are a married couple. The movie portrais a couple in Italy and deals with such difficult topics as abortion, infidelity, juggling work and family.

The so called "culture of death" that we are experiencing nowadays in the world is terrible and this movie will surely make you think.

A must see. I hope it gets distributed as it should.

Congratulations on the cast and director.

Two thumbs up and a 10 star evaluation from me!