by Cristina Battocletti
The strike by American authors and actors is hanging over the festival, Bradley Cooper and Tilda Swinton will not come. Today the film about Commander Todaro
3′ reading
The 80th edition starts at the Lido until September 9th
The 80th edition of the Venice Film Festival begins at the Lido until September 9th with the screening this evening of the film “Comandante” by Edoardo De Angelis, with Pierfrancesco Favino as the protagonist and the awarding of the Golden Lion to Liliana Cavani for her career. The statuette will be presented by Charlotte Rampling, protagonist of “The Night Porter”, Cavani’s masterpiece, who will give the eulogy for the director. This year, the exhibition is looming over the strike of 11,500 authors and 160,000 American actors, who have been protesting for more than a hundred days to re-discuss with the majors the fair distribution of proceeds and the sustainable integration of new production models Artificial Intelligence. . It’s likely that Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan and Maya Hawke will be missing from the red carpet for “Maestro,” as will Michael Fassbender, Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo and Tilda Swinton. Confirms the presence of Adam Driver, Mads Mikkelsen and Jessica Chastain.
The ceremony was led by the event’s patron, Caterina Murino, star of many films from James Bond to Pappi Corsicato, with a speech about the power of cinema.
“Comandante” by Edoardo De Angelis is the opening film
What is impressive, however, is the opening film, which tells the story of Salvatore Todaro, the commander of the Royal Navy submarine Cappellini, who is responsible for saving the lives of the crew of the Belgian merchant ship Kabalo in October 1940, which was sunk by the Cappellini and had been attacked .
A true war blockbuster with the sepia tones of Ferran Paredes Rubio’s beautiful photography, which carries a deeply political message: to save the man at sea anyway, even under wartime conditions. A powerful film with great tension and remarkable acting skills, starting with Favino, who even masters the more or less accentuated Venetian color scheme depending on the situation, up to each of the sailors in the truly claustrophobic interior, in which Massimiliano stands out, above all Rossi, Arturo Muselli , Giuseppe Brunetti and Johan Heldenbergh. Silvia D’Amico, Todaro’s wife, is also convincing, immersed in an almost D’Annunzio aura (Massimo Cantini Parrini’s rough costumes are beautiful).
The “Being Italian” Controversy
But this is exactly why there was a dispute on the Lido: When the captain of the Kabalo asked Todaro after his rescue in the Azores why he exposed himself to such danger to save her, the commander replied: “Because we are Italian.” , someone suggested that the script hinted at a fascist patriotism prized by the right. This is difficult to accept for a writer like Sandro Veronesi, who, together with Edoardo De Angelis, wrote the screenplay on which the novel of the same name, published by Bompiani, is based, and who has always distinguished himself for his commitment to hospitality. While De Angelis responds ironically with a joke about his Neapolitan origins: “As a Neapolitan, I wondered what it meant to be Italian.” That’s what we learned, I think. When I came across the character of Todaro, I understood what it means to enrich oneself through diversity. If I say that being Italian means saving lives at sea, then I am Italian.” While Favino remembered his childhood: “I often had to leave my room because my father arrived with a Haitian as a host or my mother had one “Maybe it’s because I’m from the south, but I think that where six people eat, eight people eat. If that’s a way of being Italian, then I see myself in it.” The actor then wanted to say a few words about the character he played: “Todaro is a great example of the complexity of human beings.” He was a practicing Catholic and spiritualist, was enthusiastic about oriental religions and was a convinced soldier. Able to disobey at a moment when he cannot communicate his disobedience, and he does so knowing that he is obeying the highest law, that of life.”
Cristina Battocletti
Head of Service
View at ilsole24ore.com