Valentina Lodovini Movies
- 2009
This warm, earthy and witty comedy from Italian director Massimo Venier observes the events that befall Matteo (Alessandro Tiberi), a 30-year-old college graduate with a mathematics degree. Equipped with a position in the marketing department of a telecommunications firm, he suddenly learns that the outfit is getting ready to cut back on personnel. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alessandro Tiberi, Valentina Lodovini, (more)
Raised in a Catholic orphanage in provincial France, young Coco Chanel never imagined that her life would one day become an epic story worthy of a Lifetime original movie, full of passionate romance, and trailblazing pioneering in the world of fashion. The movie opens on 1950's Paris, as a 70 year old Coco (Shirley MacClaine), now a household name, is embarking on the second wave of her career with her first new collection in over a decade. Soon, a series of flashbacks illustrate how she got to be where she is today, both personally and professionally. Young Coco (played by Barbora Babulova) is seen working tirelessly as a seamstress, showing a unique talent for making garments more flattering and convenient despite her lowly position. Pursued by a rich man named Étienne, she soon leaves the thankless job for the comfort of life as a kept woman, but class differences eventually tear them apart. The relationship gives Coco the chance to perfect her skill as a hatmaker, however, and she leaves Etienne to open her own shop. A new romance with an Englishman named Arthur (known affectionately as "Boy") soon blossoms, and proves to be the greatest happiness and greatest tragedy of her life - but will the effects of this epic tale of love, war, and betrayal eventually prevent the burgeoning fashion maverick from fulfilling her true potential? ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shirley MacLaine, Barbora Bobulova, (more)
- 2008
Elio Germano stars in this tense crime thriller as Giorgio, a law student with virtually impeccable behavior and a perfect record - until his path crosses with that of the shady Francesco (Michele Riondino). The latter is professional gambler who makes a practice of infiltrating casinos and cheating at poker. Francesco systematically lures Elio out of law school classrooms and into gambling halls, and soon Elio finds himself helplessly drawn into an unfamiliar and dangerous yet all too exciting realm. Director Daniele Vicari co-adapted the bestselling novel by Gianrico Carofiglio with the author and Francesco Carofiglio. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Elio Germano, Michele Riondino, (more)
- 2008
A young couple readying for the birth of their first child agree to let a team of documentary filmmakers follow them on their journey as they go from being a perfect couple to a perfect family. The only problem is that as the pregnancy progresses, their relationship falls apart. Now, the experience is decidedly bittersweet as they embrace the joy of a new baby and the pain of breaking up, all while the ever more intimate gaze of the filmmakers' lens captures their every moment. ~ Cammila Albertson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alba Rohrwacher, Marco Foschi, (more)
- 2007
The title of Carlo Mazzacurati's tense and moody small-town drama La Giusta Distanza (AKA The Right Distance, 2007) refers to a writer's need to maintain an appropriate amount of professional "distance" from his or her subject; the journalist in question here is Giovanni (neophyte Giovanni Capovilla), a late adolescent with a flair for journalistic correspondence. As the story opens, Giovanni attaches himself to a big city paper and agrees to cover events that transpire in his Po River Valley hamlet. Meanwhile, the arrival in town of fetching teacher Mara (Valentina Lodovini) turns more than a few heads, including Giovanni's and that of Hassan, a local immigrant mechanic from Tunisia. Mara herself just happens to be single, but finds a dearth of acceptable suitors in the community, except for Guido, a bus driver; problem is, he's already romantically involved with another. Mara then finds Hassan spying through her window one night; she manages to overlook this, however, and then - on an ill-advised note - begins a romance with the mechanic, without recognizing the extent of what she's getting herself into. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Giovanni Capovilla, Valentina Lodovini, (more)
- 2006
In writer/director Paolo Sorrentino's second feature, The Family Friend (L'Amico di Famiglia), Giacomo Rizzo stars as Geremia de Geremei, a sixtysomething tailor who lives with his mother in a disgusting and decrepit flat. Though wealthy from the money that he has culled via loan-sharking, Geremia is a thoroughly miserable wretch, driven into the throes of destruction by his own incredible selfishness and his obsessive infatuation with a beautiful local girl, Rosalba (Laura Chiatta), whom he meets when asked to assist with her wedding. Geremia agrees, but takes the bride off alone and pressures her into sex, little realizing that he's sowing the seeds of his own downfall. Meanwhile, a bidet supplier attempts to goad Geremia into giving him a massive loan -- an amount that Geremia could never possibly fork over. Throughout the film, Sorrentino packs in numerous surrealistic touches, from the sight of a nun buried up to her neck in sand (accompanied by an aural assault on the soundtrack) to a grotesque glimpse of Rizzo with a potato poultice around his head to the jarring sight of Geremia's village, built by Mussolini on an Italian swampland. In the process, Sorrentino manages to create his own distinct world and thoroughly unforgettable characters. He also pulls off an incredibly difficult feat, by enabling the audience to care about a markedly unpleasant central figure. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Giacomo Rizzo, Fabrizio Bentivoglio, (more)
