Vincenzo Peluso Movies

In a film reminiscent of Federico Fellini's 8 1/2, Claudio Del Punta directs this portrait of a young artist. The film opens with painter Vera (Cristina Moglia) piling through her wardrobe, looking for the perfect dress for her gallery opening. As she plucks out one article of clothing after another, she reminisces about her childhood and old flames. Meanwhile, her current friends, played by Vincenzo Peluso and Valentina Chico, help her out. Feminine, Singular was screened at the 1999 AFI/L.A. Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide

The second feature of Steano Incerti, who learned his trade as assistant director to established fellow Neapolitan filmmakers Mario Martone and Pappi Corsicato, Prima del Tramonto (Before Sundown) is set on Italy's southern coast, a transit point for every kind of human and illegal cargo from around the Mediterranean border. Ali (Said Taghmaoui) is a young and charming Moroccan man who works as a waiter for Nicetra, the old boss of the local criminal ring. At 8 o'clock in the morning, we see him getting ready to marry the daughter of the boss with dreams of settling down comfortably. But at the last minute, he decides to reject the security of an easy solution and deserts the ceremony to take his destiny in his own hands. He finds shelter in a seedy hotel with Assia, who is also from Morocco and is hopelessly in love with him. They make love and plan to run to the airport when it gets dark. Ali falls asleep, only to be woken up by two thugs of the boss, who did not forgive his desertion. Assia has disappeared; probably she has betrayed him. Ali starts to run across hostile land with two men on his tail who are determined to take revenge for their boss. The film is a contemporary thriller, which explores the crisis of values in a society in transition towards a new, multi-ethnic identity. Prima del tramonto was screened in competition at the 1999 Locarno International Film Festival. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide

This Italian crime drama, based on the book Io il Tebano (I, the Theban) by Antonio Carlucci and Paolo Rossetti, alters names in dramatizing the lives of real-life Milan gangsters. In prison in 1980, Michele Croce (Claudio Amendola) tells his story to an investigator as he looks back on his life, seen in flashbacks. Avoiding a regular job, the kid from Southern Italy teamed with his buddy Salvatore (Tony Sperandeo) to pull off small-time crimes, aggressively edging his way to the top of the heap as one of Milan's main gangsters. Independent Italian producer Claudio Bonivento turned to directing with this film. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

A police captain plays a mental game of cat and mouse with a convicted terrorist as they cross Italy in an armored car. The story is set in 1983 and takes place over a 24-hour period. The prisoner Braccio, serving the fourth year of a 30-year sentence, is told that he is going to Milan where he can spend one month visiting with his lover Giulia. His guard is known only as the Captain. As they travel, the kindly captain encourages Braccio to speak of the past and the events that led to his conviction. Braccio doesn't know that the Captain is really after the names of his former cohorts. Along the way, the two have several key encounters that eventually lead Braccio, who will get a reduced sentence if he rats, to make a painful decision. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

A self-described son of neorealism, director Gianni Amelio utilized non-professional actors, authentic locations, and unadorned filmmaking techniques to create this honest, uncompromising look at modern Italy and its faltering human relations. Il Ladro di Bambini (The Stolen Children) begins in Milan, where Sicilian siblings Rosetta (Valentina Scalici), 11, and Luciano (Giuseppe Ieracitano), nine, live with their destitute mother. The woman regularly prostitutes Rosetta and is arrested; her children are immediately made wards of the court. Carabiniere Antonio Criaco (Enrico Lo Verso) is assigned to escort them to a foster home in a mission that appears to be simple. Yet, years of abuse forbid the siblings to trust, obey, or even like Antonio. Rosetta is hostile and demanding; Luciano is sullen and remote. When the Catholic foster home will not accept the children on the grounds of Rosetta's past, Antonio independently decides to bring them south to a home in Sicily. The three begin on a road trip during which their relationship grows and Antonio -- the epitome of hope and grace -- attempts to give the children a normal, loving experience by temporarily stealing them from their uncertain future. ~ Aubry Anne D'Arminio, All Movie Guide