Elizabeth Kaza Movies

Young married couple Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and Filippo (Filippo Nigro) have been married long enough to have become almost completely jaded by their lots in life, with most of their individual aspirations having been set aside some time ago. As their marriage begins to fall apart, the two encounter a strange old man (Massimo Girotti) who calls himself Simone since he can't seem to recall his real name or much about his past history. Filippo brings the man home to stay with them, which initially irritates Giovanna. Over time, she gradually befriends the confused old man and eventually notices a tattoo on his arm indicative of his being a WWII Holocaust survivor. Taking "Simone" to an old Roman ghetto, she helps him remember his name (Davide) and his time spent in that very ghetto -- which includes recalling the very painful memory of his lover Simone's capture and murder at the hands of the Nazis. Meanwhile, Giovanna has been spending her free time impulsively peeping across the street at her attractive neighbor Lorenzo (Raoul Bova) -- who in turn has been spying on her. Giovanna is thus forced to decide between Filippo and Lorenzo, as well as possibly realizing a long dormant professional dream that her new friend Davide may be able to help her undertake. ~ Ryan Shriver, All Movie Guide

Best known for their historical epics that examine class and social issues in British life through a thick lens of tasteful production design and good manners, director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant set their sights on an American protagonist for a change with Jefferson in Paris. As the title suggests, Jefferson in Paris deals with the five years that Thomas Jefferson (Nick Nolte) spent as U.S. ambassador to France prior to the French Revolution; while Jefferson is sympathetic to the revolutionary forces in France, he's become well enough acquainted with the ruling aristocracy that he finds himself torn between the two sides of the issue. Jefferson, a recent widower, also becomes friends with Maria Cosway (Greta Scacchi), who is married to a foppish British artist; while it's obvious the two are in love, neither is in a position to do anything about their infatuation. And while Jefferson's daughter Patsy (Gwyneth Paltrow) loves her father, she's very upset with him when he sends her to a convent school. In this midst of this personal turmoil, Jefferson's younger daughter Polly (Estelle Eonnet) arrives in Paris, with her slave Sally Hemmings (Thandie Newton) in tow. Attractive and bright (if uneducated), Sally catches Jefferson's eye, and a friendship develops that grows into something deeper; in time, Sally becomes pregnant, and her family claims that Jefferson is the father. At the time Jefferson In Paris was released, the question of Sally Hemmings' relationship with Thomas Jefferson was a matter of lively historical debate; since then, genetic evidence has shown that, while Jefferson's paternity can't be proved beyond a doubt, it is likely that he did father children with Hemmings. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Axel Corti directed this historical drama starring Timothy Dalton as King Vittorio Amadeo, a 17th-century Italian monarch who becomes obsessed with the wife of one of his courtiers (Valeria Golino). ~ Jason Ankeny, All Movie Guide

Leo just broke up with his wife, and the handsome architect wants to enjoy his sadness at this event in solitude. Unfortunately for him, his young girlfriend, an unperceptive sprite, is too much in love with him to let him out of her sight. He is on his way to a resort in the south of France, and despite his persistent, obvious and repeated attempts to get her to leave him alone, she sticks to him like glue. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

A notorious, internationally known sex symbol (Phoebe Cates) attempts to track down her birth mother in this glitzy, deliciously trashy melodrama. The mother could be one of three women, all of whom have vowed to never reveal the secret truth behind the child's illegitimate birth. Based on the novel by Shirley Conran. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide

In this story, a young nobleman with an unusually strong interest in horse-breeding is being prepared to marry the wealthy niece of an American Cardinal. (Noble families which are growing impoverished try to marry off their younger generations to the heirs of wealthy commoners.) When the girl arrives at the nobleman's family mansion the day before the wedding, she is shown around the house and its treasures and is told the story of an ancestor's legendary battle against a beast. That night, she dreams of an erotic encounter with a man/beast which culminates in the death of the beast. On awakening, she finds that she has been in bed with her fiancé, who is now dead. When mysterious bandages on his person are removed, he is seen to have a tail and one hand which has turned animal-like. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide