Stefano Abbati Movies
A family struggles to go on after a devastating loss in this deeply emotional drama from Italy. Giovanni (Nanni Moretti) is a psychiatrist with a successful practice in a small community near the ocean. Giovanni has a warm relationship with his wife Paola (Laura Morante), and they have a pair of well-adjusted teenage kids, Andrea (Giuseppe Sanfelice) and Irene (Jasmine Trinca). But the family's calm is shattered when Andrea is unexpectedly killed in an accident. Giovanni finds it impossible to continue with his work, and blames himself for the death, since he was planning to go jogging with Andrea that morning before he opted instead to take an emergency call from a client. Paola and Irene try to keep their emotions in check, but both find this all but impossible as they sink further into anger and grief. The appearance of an unexpected visitor, however, forces the family to confront their feelings about Andrea. Arianna (Sofia Vigliar) is a girl who had a summer romance with Andrea the year before, and has come to town to pay him a surprise visit, unaware of his recent death. Nanni Moretti directed and co-wrote this film, while also starring as Giovanni; it was his first dramatic feature in over a decade after devoting himself to documentaries and short films. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nanni Moretti, Laura Morante, (more)
Fuori Dal Mondo/Not of This World tells a story about people learning to deal with their responsibilities and follow their true path in life. Caterina (Margherita Buy) is a novice nun who is soon to take her vows. One day, while taking a walk in the park, she discovers a newborn baby which has been wrapped in a sweater. While Caterina immediately turns the child over to the proper authorities, she feels compelled to find out more about the baby and its parents. A tag on the sweater leads her to Ernesto (Silvio Orlando), a mean-spirited type who operates a dry cleaning shop. Ernesto eventually admits that he may be the child's father, and, as he and Caterina get to know each other, he begins to open up and realize the importance of accepting his responsibilities. Similarly, Caterina begins to realize her desire to have a child of her own, and her growing attraction to Ernesto, may mean a life in the church may not be right for her. Meanwhile, the child's mother has to deal with her guilt and confusion, her unhappy relationship with her family, and her need to build a new and healthier life for herself. Fuori Dal Mondo/Not of This World marks the fourth collaboration between actress Margherita Buy and director Giuseppe Piccioni. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Margherita Buy, Silvio Orlando, (more)
- 1998
Playwright Ugo Chiti directed this Italian romantic drama set in the summer of 1957. Single mother Anna (Maria Grazia Cucinotta) marries truckdriver Fosco (Lazar Ristovski) and moves with her infant daughter Santina (Jessica Auriemma) to a rural Tuscan coastal community where Fosco lives with his son, sensitive teen Livio (Giorgio Noe). Fosco, who moonlights by robbing Etruscan graves of relics valued by art dealers, is jailed for theft and thrown in prison, a situation which draws Anna and Livio together into a passionate romance. Shown at the 1998 Venice Film Festival (Perspectives). ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maria Grazia Cucinotta, Lazar Ristovski, (more)
- 1998
Darker undertones infiltrate this lightweight Italian romantic comedy, as a troubled young man's fancy turns to obsession and jealousy. While most of his friends are eagerly preparing to graduate from high school, Matteo realizes that his poor grades are going to hold him back unless he can devise a plan to radically alter his records. His buddy Piterone has the same problem. Matteo's depression lifts when he meets the free-spirited, slightly older artist Margherita and falls in love. She seems to return his affection, and the youth eagerly moves into her studio apartment. At first Matteo is happy, but as time passes, he begins discovering small signs around the place that imply that his beloved has not only had an active past love-life, but that she may also be cheating on him. The more things he finds, the more suspicious Matteo becomes, and when suspicion becomes paranoid obsession, his relationship with Margherita begins to crumble. At the same time, Matteo and Pietrone attempt a desperate ploy to change their grades, an action that brings the story to its climax. The feature-film debut of documentary and television director Gabriele Muccino, Ecco Fatto competed in the 1998 Turin Film Festival. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Giorgio Pasotti, Barbora Bobulova, (more)
- 1996
Three losers in the game of love find solace in each other's company in this touching Italian comedy. Stefano is an unemployed intellectual who just lost another lover. For him it is the third strike and wanting out, he crawls into an empty van, gobbles down sleeping pills and awaits his death. Giulio, the plumber who owns the vehicle finds Stefano. Giulio already has a full-plate of misery with a money-grubbing ex-wife, a daughter who barely talks to him and a faltering affair with a young woman pining for intellectual stimulation, but still, he reluctantly takes Stefano in and helps him recover. Lucia has just been royally burned by her latest lover, a fellow who cruelly stole her heart and life savings before leaving with another woman. In desperation, she has become an expensive call girl. Meanwhile, Stefano and Giulio talk and learn about each other's disparate lives. Giulio talks Stefano into working with him. They meet Lucia when she calls them over to fix her leaky faucet. Stefano falls for her and skittishly begins to woo her. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1996
The English title of this complex Italian film is apt. Featuring 65 main characters and 130 speaking parts (famous faces abound and many of the actors appeared gratis), and ranging in tone from tartly humorous to darkly tragic, it presents 30 interwoven slices from the lives of modern day Romans during a single day. The lone, silent figure of a lone jogger provides a sort of continuity between the vignettes. Beginning at sunset of the previous day, the jogger is seen warming up on his apartment terrace, looking for all the world as if he would like to jump. The rest of the stories seem to be randomly presented. Stories include the robbery of a Chinese restaurant that causes a birthday celebrant to die of fright, two different newlyweds who find themselves attracted to each other, an opportunistic mechanic's plan to capitalize on the death of a rival, a sneaky, sadistic meter maid and others. One uniting feature of the stories is their underlying bitter assessment of modern humanity. People are seen as selfish and basically cruel, still the stories move quickly and the balance between humor and drama, affection and cynicism, and shallowness and complexity is carefully maintained. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1993
Luca (Stefano Abbati) was a political activist, sure. He fought corruption with the best of them, and worked with other who did. But now he has a decent life as a deejay at a radio station, and a girlfriend who doesn't ask too much of him. Why should he go along with his friend Giovanni (Alberto DiStasio) when he asks him to help with the production of a documentary on the terrorism of the 1970s? For one thing, he hasn't seen his parents and some of the old crowd for years, and wonders how they've been doing. For another, maybe it's time to reassess his decision. Soon enough, in this combination drama and thriller, he rediscovers why he got out of the game. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stefano Abbati, Alberto di Stasio, (more)
- 1988
Davide (Daniel Ezralow) is a young psychiatrist who is tormented by his own dreams in this psychological drama. Maddalena (Beatrice Dalle) is a beautiful but disturbed mental patient who resembles a woman Davide dreamed was burned at the stake after being convicted of witchcraft. Davide soon has trouble dividing fantasy and reality when he falls for Maddalena. A well-orchestrated dance scene and simulated orgy with clothed participants are the big production numbers. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Daniel Ezralow
- 1986
In 1978, Italian politics were thrown into turmoil when the Christian Democratic president Aldo Moro was executed. This gripping political drama is based on American journalist Robert Katz's non-fiction book Days of Wrath and documents the convoluted chain of events that lead to Moro's death. Moro was the first politico to bring his country's political factions together in 40 years. His ordeal begins shortly after he is elected. He is en route to church with his five body guards when they are ambushed by radical communist terrorists, the Red Brigade. They quickly execute the body guards and spirit Moro to a hidden "people's prison' where he is interrogated. Neither Moro's Christian Democrats nor the newly reinstated Communists will deal or in any way acknowledge the Red Brigade. They do however engage in a massive search for the missing Moro. But the search is poorly organized and ineffectual. Meanwhile Moro is allowed to send letters to the government. He suggests that the Vatican be called in to negotiate a prisoner exchange with the terrorists, but the Vatican refuses. Instead, they make a formal plea for Moro's unconditional freedom. The government does little or nothing to help the president and Moro realizes that the organization he helped create has abandoned him. In desperation, he becomes sharply critical of the government that continues to stall while the Red Brigade becomes increasingly frustrated and impatient. Eventually they decide to kill Moro and later stuff his body in a red Renault which they parked between the Christian Democrat and the Communist headquarters. The Moro Affair or Il Caso Moro as it was known in Italy, was extremely popular in it's native country, but it also sparked considerable controversy for as the case unfolds, nagging doubts and holes arise that infer that perhaps the government had more of a hand in the assassination than the Red Brigade. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gian Maria Volontè, Margarita Lozano, (more)
Bearing no particular relation to any literary or cinematic work of the same title, this erotic drama by Marco Bellocchio uses sexual expression to work out a character's hang-ups, problems, and personality. Andrea (Federico Ptizalis) is in his last year of high school when he meets Giulia (Maruschka Detmers). Her father was killed by terrorists, yet Giulia is engaged to marry a former terrorist who is released from prison after he names names. After Andrea and Giulia meet, they have some torrid sexual encounters, though Giulia continues her engagement to the ex-terrorist because her wealthy family opposes any liaison with the lower-class Andrea. Mixed in with Giulia's two love affairs are several odd characters, such as the former terrorist's mother. No one is particularly stable, least of all Giulia. This film was released in the United States in both R and X-rated versions, the latter featuring a brief but explicit oral sex scene. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maruschka Detmers, Federico Pitzalis, (more)
- 1985
Filmed in 1982 and never released theatrically in the U.S., this fantasy-adventure film revolves around an epic battle between the forces of good and evil, culminating in the struggle for a legendary throne. Good is personified by Siegfried (Peter McCoy, aka Pietro Torrisi), who has been granted the temporary power of invisibility and whose sorcerer-father makes him about as invulnerable as Superman. Siegfried's enemy is the evil Morak (Harrison Muller), offspring of Satan's messenger Belial (Muller again) and an evil witch. If Morak is not able to marry Princess Valkari (Sabrina Siani) before he gains the throne, it will become a literal hot seat and consume him in flames. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sabrina Siani, Peter McCoy, (more)
