Luigi Diberti Movies
Turkish-born director Ferzan Ozpetek's meditative, character-driven ensemble drama Saturno Contro (a French-Italian-Turkish co-production, from a script co-authored by Ozpetek and Gianni Romoli) studies the interrelationships of a tightly-knit group of gay and straight friends, in the period surrounding the premature death of one young man and the split of a married hetero couple. At the story's center are Lorenzo (Luca Argentero), a confident, surreally handsome, 30-year-old Italian man, and his live-in lover, the author Davide (Pierfrancesco Favino. They spend their non-working hours with a colorful clique that includes: bright, spunky cocaine addict Roberta (Ambra Angiolini); husband-and-wife (and parents) Antonio (Stefano Accorsi) and Angelica (Margherita Buy); caustic Neval (Serra Yilmaz) and her husband, a cop (Filippo Timi); Davide's former lover, the acid-tongued Sergio (Ennio Fantastichini); and a new arrival to the group, Paolo. After Ozpetek and Romoli take time and care to introduce the characters, an unforeseen crisis arises: Lorenzo is rushed to the hospital, and dies. In time, his distanced father (Luigi Diberti) turns up, accompanied by his second wife, Minnie (Lunetta Savino) and still grappling with the knowledge of his son's homosexuality. Meanwhile, Antonio and Angelica split, the latter devastated by the sudden discovery of her husband's infidelity with a florist (Isabella Ferrari). ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stefano Accorsi, Margherita Buy, (more)
- 2004
A convict and the girl who occasionally comes to play Scrabble with him form a curious connection in this drama from director Stefano Pasetto. As they sit on opposite sides of the game board, the pair gradually finds their conversation drifting into the past. The outside world is only an illusion, and neither have much interest in following the social norms that define that world. While she is a student of medicine who dabbled in many careers before qualifying, he has always found solace in photography. They met on the metro, where he would stare at her back daydreaming and she would bask in the warmth of his gaze. Eventually, fate brought them together. Later, a fleeting moment of happiness is followed by an unexpected split and both begin to understand the true meaning of destiny. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fabrizio Rongione, Barbora Bobulova, (more)
- 2003
Italian filmmaker Luca Barbareschi co-writes, directs, and stars in the political comedy Il Trasformista (The Chameleon). Family man Augusto Vigno (Barbareschi) is a small business owner in northern Italy. While participating in a local environmental protest, he is picked up by influential government dealers who clean him up and prepare him for office. He finds his idealistic values compromised by the big-time political scene in Rome and the advances of a single woman (Catherine Wilkening). The Chameleon was shown at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival as part of the Horizons program. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Luca Barbareschi, Rocco Papaleo, (more)
- 2003
Long a staple of Italian theater and vocal music, Marco Filiberti makes an auspicious debut as a feature-film writer/director in this melodrama set against the decadent backdrop of the porn industry. Filiberti plays the tanned, toned, and egotistical Riki, whose name is well-known to the country's gay adult-film connoisseurs. After the death of his aristocratic father, Riki is brought back into contact with his estranged brother Federico (Urbano Barberini), who views his brother's chosen profession with a combination of disdain and curiosity. As the two reconcile their differences, Riki has to come to terms with growing up and taking responsibility, which for him includes the desire to become a father by adopting an orphan. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marco Filiberti, Urbano Barberini, (more)
- 2002
Francesco Falaschi's comedy I Am Emma stars Cecilia Dazzi as a woman who suffers from an unusual disorder. Emma is a town councilwoman whose husband (Marco Giallini) has taken a mistress because he dislikes her repressed behavior. Her demeanor changes radically when the town pharmacist runs out of Emma's daily dose of depressants. Emma has a disorder in which she is naturally outgoing and upbeat. Her marriage gets rocky as she expresses her true self. The town responds poorly to a woman being so brazen, but Emma's best friend (Elda Alvigini) is inspired by Emma to make a major life change. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Cecilia Dazzi, Marco Giallini, (more)
Parenthood stirs up a wealth of mixed emotions in this drama from Italy. Carlo (Stefano Accorsi) and Giulia (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) are a couple in their late twenties who realize they've crossed the final threshold into adulthood when Giulia discovers she's going to have a baby. Even though Carlo has already settled down, he sees parenthood as the first step towards becoming the sort of middle-class suburbanite he's never respected, and he's not happy about it. Carlo's friends are also having mixed feelings about the onset of maturity: Adriano (Giorgio Pasotti) can't decide if he should go through with his marriage to Livia (Sabrina Impacciatore), Paolo (Claudio Santamaria) is trying to find a way out of going into business with his father, and Alberto (Marco Cocci) seems to be waging a one-man war against monogamy by seducing as many women as possible. Meanwhile, Giulia is having her own misgivings about parenthood, and her mother Anna (Stefania Sandrelli) is torn between happiness for her daughter and dread that she's now old enough to be a grandmother; Anna's malaise isn't eased by the lack of compassion shown by her husband (Luigi Diberti). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stefano Accorsi, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, (more)
- 2001
Three families trace their fortunes, for good and ill, over the course of ten summers in this drama from French filmmaker Yves Hanchar. The Bertini, Delperee, and Foucher families first meet by the seaside in 1990, and as the various members become fast friends, they find themselves vacationing together each summer over the next decade. Daniel Delperee (Jeremy Lippmann) finds himself falling in love with Carole (Jessica Pare), a friend of one of the Foucher girls, and over the next several summers he has to come to terms with his feelings for her. He must also face new responsibilities, as his mother Marianne (Catherine Hosmalin), who had been unhappy since parting with her husband Paul (Luc Picard), dies in an auto accident. Daniel then is unsure how to react after Paul becomes involved with a much younger woman, Maddelena (Floriane Devigne). En Vacances received its North American premiere at the 2001 Santa Barbara Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Luc Picard, Luigi Diberti, (more)
- 2000
A young man finds that places as well as people can change with the years in this drama from Italy. Tobia (Federico Galante) is a young boy from a wealthy family who is fascinated with the Caffe Quattro Palme, a small, beautifully appointed cafe that caters to a small but loyal clientele of aging individualists. Tobia senses there's something special about the place, and he spends much of his time there, getting to know Giuseppe (Roberto Citran), the head waiter. A decade later, Tobia (now played by (Nicola Russo) still hangs out at the cafe, and he's made the acquaintance of another regular, a lovely young woman named Annetta (Candice Hugo). But with the passage of time, the cafe's old regulars have begun to drift away, and a crowd of young bohemians and vagrants begins to take over, changing the character of the place and leaving Tobia to wonder if he can still call it his own. Tobia Al Caffe was shown in competition at the 2000 Taormina Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roberto Citran, Nicola Russo, (more)
- 1999
Delving into the uncharted territory of hardcore melodrama and three-hanky pornography, director Davide Ferrario recounts this tale of the life and death of an Italian X-rated icon. Nina (Elisabetta Cavallotti) is a middle-class woman who finds herself drawn to the adult film industry because she really, really likes sex and because she enjoys having men ogle her. Yet in spite of her daily rounds of athletic heterosexual coupling, she becomes romantically attached to Cristiana (Stefania Orsola Garello), an editor of a hardcore magazine. During a checkup, Nina learns that she has cancer and tries to continue to work in spite of ongoing chemotherapy treatment. Yet when word of her malady gets around, she soon learns that she is no longer in demand. The weight of Nina's illness proves to be too much, and she dumps Cristiana in favor of fellow cancer victim Flavio (Flavio Insinna). Ferrario punctuates this work with sketches of the porn biz including bored set technicians and sleazy producers who are into S&M. This film was screened at the 1999 Venice Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stefania Orsola Garello, Flavio Insinna, (more)
A man trying to honor the last wish of his beloved wife has to keep an entire city alive in this bittersweet romantic comedy. Marcello (Jean Reno) is the owner of a restaurant in a small village in Italy. His wife Roseanna (Mercedes Ruehl) has received some awful news: she has learned that her weak heart has gotten worse, and she has only a few weeks to live. Roseanna has given Marcello a final request: she wants to be buried next to her daughter, who died some years before. Marcello wants nothing more than to comply with her wishes, but there's a problem; the town's cemetery is quite small, and right now funeral plots are on a first-come, first-served basis. The spot next to Roseanna's daughter does happen to be open, but she'll only get it if no one else dies first. So Marcello suddenly becomes the village's watchdog of health and safety, trying to make sure no one needlessly dies, and even shuffles around a few bodies of people who do happen to pass on. Meanwhile, Roseanna is worried about both Marcello and her sister Cecilia (Polly Walker) and would like them to marry after her death so they won't have to be alone. However, Marcello and Cecilia don't always get along very well, and besides, Cecilia is in love with Antonio (Mark Frankel), whose father has prevented the town's cemetery from expanding. For Roseanna was filmed under the title Roseanna's Grave and was briefly publicized as For the Love of Roseanna. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Reno, Mercedes Ruehl, (more)
- 1996
Dreamy and bittersweet, this Italian comedy chronicles the fantasies of an overweight dreamer. All her life the rotund and thirtyish Isotta has had a propensity for day dreams. Born too thin, her overprotective mother too soon fattened her up, thereby insuring a life of obesity for her daughter. When not dreaming away her days or working at a factory, Isotta deals with her father's compulsive gambling habit and hangs out with her friends Luisa and Caterina. One day, Isotta meets a handsome Greek salesman and they become friends. Things are fine until she misinterprets his friendship for something else. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
The title affliction causes sufferers to react to paintings in extreme and bizarre ways. In the case of police detective Anna Manni, she swoons and feels herself entering hallucinatory versions of the artwork she sees. This Italian psychothriller contains dark elements of horror as Manni tries to capture a murderous serial rapist. The lady detective is first seen walking the art-filled hallways of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. The great paintings have a terrible effect upon her and she ends up having one of her surreal visions after fainting in front of Brueghel's "The Flight of Icarus." She sees herself falling through the painting's deep ocean and is only saved by the hands of Alfredo, a stranger who saw her fall. She returns woozily to her hotel. Her memory has temporarily lapsed, and once in her room she finds herself similarly mesmerized by a painting on the wall, but eventually she remembers her assignment. Unfortunately, when she meets up with Alfredo again, he attacks and rapes her. He then forces her to watch while he rapes and murders another. She manages to escape and make it back to Rome where she begins seeing a psychiatrist. Her former lover Marco also makes sure she is guarded 24-hours a day. Unfortunately for Anna it is not enough, and Alfredo strikes again. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1996
The complicated travails of several generations of Italian women provide the basis for this drama that is based on a novel by Susanna Tamaro. It begins with the peaceful death of Olga, the elderly family matriarch. Marta, her granddaughter returns from the US to attend the funeral and once in Olga's villa in Trieste, begins reading her grandmother's diary. Olga's story unfolds via flashback. As a young woman, Oldga had to marry Antonio a man she didn't love. Later she became passionately involved with a handsome doctor at the local spa. He impregnates her and shortly thereafter dies in a terrible car wreck. The result of their love is Illaria, who grows up to be terribly neurotic. She bears Marta and then she too dies in an automobile accident, leaving Marta to be raised by Olga. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Virna Lisi, Margherita Buy, (more)
- 1995
Two policemen, one experienced with scores to settle, the other new and vulnerable, provide the impetus for this arresting action movie set in Italy. The story begins with a shoot out in a raunchy disco. There undercover cop, Lazarus, kills three crooks. His reward is a transfer to a desk job in Turin. There he becomes friends with earnest rookie Andrea who comes from a long line of police officers. Andrea is given the job of guarding crime boss Sante who was hospitalized after attempting suicide. Lazarus makes a terrible error and leaves Andrea alone with Sante as he goes to take care of business. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
This biography of Ludwig von Beethoven (played here by Gary Oldman) builds its narrative around an actual letter found after his death, addressed only to the composer's "immortal beloved." The responsibility of discovering this mysterious person's identity falls to Beethoven's friend and secretary (Jeroen Krabbé), who sets out on an investigation that soon becomes an exploration of the composer's life. Through recollections and scattered hints, we receive glimpses of Beethoven's relationships with women, particularly his close interaction with a pair of very different Countesses. The film also pays prominent attention to the composer's oddly obsessive relationship with the young nephew whom he attempted to mold in his own image, and Beethoven's eventual hearing loss and descent into emotional instability. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Oldman, Jeroen Krabbé, (more)
- 1990
Lucia (atassja Kinski) is a volatile, exciteable young woman. She forms a romance with Carlo (Stefano Dionisi), who is somewhat callow and is very skittish. Their romance is not an easy one, but they are assisted in coping with its ups and downs by their mutual friendship with Franco (Franco Citti), an older, wiser and more stable man. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nastassja Kinski, Stefano Dionisi, (more)
- 1987
In this uneven drama, Walter Ferrari (Ugo Tognazzi) is an Italian soccer coach fired on the eve of the playoffs by club President Di Carlo (Lino Capolicchio). He overcomes his feelings of bitterness in order to help his former club win the big game, but his relationship with the team and his family becomes strained after his dismissal. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ugo Tognazzi, Lino Capolicchio, (more)
- 1986
This drama about a young girl's struggle to overcome the dehumanization of poverty depicts the steady, corrosive effects of her life on her psyche. Bruna (Valeria Golino) has had to work since the age of 13 to help support her father and brothers. She gets up at 3 A.M. to catch the bus to go clean offices, and when she is home, she cleans and cooks for her siblings and father. In spite of this existence, she is spunky and optimistic. As she gets older, she falls in love with Sergio (Bals Roca-Rey), and he moves in with her and her family. But that relationship ends when she meets another young man, Mario (Livio Panieri). This new romance leads her away from her siblings and father and although there is no inkling of any trouble, the drudgery of her past existence catches up with her. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Valeria Golino, Bals Roca-Rey, (more)
- 1980
One of director Michelangelo Antonioni's more obscure works from the 1980s, this psychological period piece reunites the filmmaker with one of his favorite performers, Monica Vitti. Shot on video and based upon the play The Eagle Has Two Heads (Jean Cocteau made his own film version of the work in 1947), the film casts Vitti as a queen who squares off against an anarchist poet who has come to her castle to kill her. Due to his remarkable resemblance to the long-dead king of the land, the queen falls in love with the dissident. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Monica Vitti, Franco Branciaroli, (more)
- 1980
This autobiographical drama is a captivating look at the ambiance of a strong family and a small provinicial town in times gone by. Based on a book by Mario Tobino, who also wrote the screenplay, the story centers on his mother (Anna Maria Gherardi) and her memories of childhood. The elderly woman goes back home to the town where she and her extended, wealthy family lived for many years. She revisits her early period in the town during the weeks preceding her death: eccentric villagers come and go, she and her sisters interact, and she revels in trips to the countryside with her children. Interspersed with her memories are her son's own remembrances of his childhood and how he viewed the same villagers, the same family, and his mother. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anna-Maria Gherardi, Luigi Diberti, (more)
In this Italian thriller, a woman is tormented by morbid premonitions heralding the deaths of people she knows. As she tries to understand the terrifying phenomenon, she remembers her childhood when her mother jumped off a cliff and seemingly died. As the visions continue, she not only sees her own upcoming death, she also gains insight into the truth about her mother's demise. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jennifer O'Neill, Gabriele Ferzetti, (more)
- 1977
A comeback film of sorts for director Marco Vicario, Mogliamante stars Laura Antonelli as the wife of political activist Marcello Mastrioanni. When her husband has to go into hiding from the authorities, Laura consoles herself by going through his private papers. Curiously, discovering the length and breadth of Mastrioanni's activities-including his extramarital affairs--sparks a sexual reawakening in his wife. More curious is the personality change undergone by Laura: formerly meek and subservient, she literally "becomes" her firebrand husband in his absence. As for Mastrioanni, once his role in life has been usurped, he is reduced to little more than a sidelines observer. This diverting domestic drama was also issued under the titles Wifemistress and Lover, Wife. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Laura Antonelli, Marcello Mastroianni, (more)
