Filippo Timi Movies

This unusual and offbeat historical drama rests on a little-known conceit. Though seldom discussed in history books (and reportedly undisclosed for half a century), fascist dictator Benito Mussolini conceived an illegitimate son by a woman named Ida Dalser -- a son Mussolini allowed to be born, acknowledged, and then promptly denied for the duration of his life. The tale begins in early 20th century Milan, with Benito (Fabrizio Costella) working as the socialist editor of a controversial newspaper called Avanti. His dream in life involves triumphantly leading the Italian masses away from monarchy and toward a "socially emancipated future." He met the young and wealthy Ida (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) once before, in Trento -- where they enjoyed a brief exchange; they re-encounter one another during Mussolini's period at Avanti and it becomes clear that Ida has fallen deeply in love with Benito; she believes wholeheartedly in his ideals and his future as the leader of Italy -- to such an extent that she sells everything she has (her apartment, furniture, jewelry, and the beauty salon she owns) to fuel the development of his newspaper, Popolo d'Italia. While the two become romantically entangled, with Ida positively magnetized by Benito's charisma and Benito hooked on a lust for power, Benito quickly switches spiritual and political allegiances overnight, changing from an atheistic socialist to a deeply Catholic fascist -- Catholic, because an allegiance with the Vatican will enable him to wrest and retain control over Italy's government. Benito and Ida marry and parent a son together, Benito Albino Mussolini (circa 1915), but the marriage certificate soon conveniently disappears and Ida learns, to her horror, that Benito has married someone else. She unwisely begins to protest the situation -- so loudly and persistently that she's first forced into house arrest and then shoved permanently into an insane asylum -- raising key questions about the fate and future of her young son. On a stylistic level, director Marco Bellocchio films this historical material with the passion, theatricality, lyricism, and tragedy of a classicist Italian opera. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

An allegorical story of love and power is played against the backdrop of one of Italy's most powerful car manufacturers. Emma (Valeria Solarino) was born and raised in a working-class family, but she's long had bourgeois ambitions and has risen through the ranks to become a white-collar employee with the Fiat automobile company. Emma is also romantically involved with Silvio (Fabrizio Gifuni), one of Fiat's top executives, but while she loves Silvio, she finds herself drawn to assembly line worker Sergio (Filippo Timi) after a chance meeting. Sergio and his fellow shop workers are unhappy with their pay and working conditions, and are giving serious thought to a strike that would shut down production at Fiat, though Emma was raised to think of Fiat as family as much as employers. Torn between the love of two men, Emma also has to decide if her allegiances are with labor or management. Signorina Effe (aka Miss F) was directed by Wilma Labate, who also contributed to the screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Portuguese filmmaker Teresa Villaverde turns her attentions to the topic of human trafficking in modern-day Europe with this tale of an optimistic Russian émigré who is forced into prostitution after leaving St. Petersburg to seek out a better life in Germany. Sonia (Ana Moreira) is a dreamer in her early twenties who is looking to escape the bleak poverty of St. Petersburg in hopes of improving her unfortunate lot in life. Upon finding illegal work at a German car factory, it appears as if Sonia's luck may be taking a turn for the better. When the factory is supposedly raided by police looking for illegal workers and a fellow Russian implores the Sonia to hide in the trunk of a car, the panicked girl's once bright future begins to grow considerably dimmer. Subsequently smuggled across Europe, Sonia is used as a sex slave in Germany before being transported to Italy to serve as a human plaything for the simple minded son of a powerful millionaire. Now trapped in an opulent mansion prison with no one to turn to and no place to run, Sonia soon becomes obsessed with the prospect of escaping her outwardly lavish hell on Earth. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

The heroine of this tragi-comic Mediterranean story is 25-year old Imma, a helpless romantic who lives in a decrepit flat in the old part of Genoa. She has a knack for putting herself in hopeless situations at work and in love, from which she is rescued only by her sense of humor. The film tries to marry the style of Italian comedy with the realism of English cinema. The director takes an ironic point of view of men and women, but from a feminine perspective. In Principio Erano le Mutande was screened as part of the International Forum of New Cinema section of the 49th Berlin Film Festival, 1999. ~ Gönül Dönmez-Colin, All Movie Guide