With haphazard plotting and characters, THE SPACE BETWEEN has little to offer beyond fetishised Italian landscapes.
Italian Race
Matteo Rovere’s family indie set in the world of GT racing is a pleasing drama that plays best when not over-thought.
Latin Lover
Cristina Comencini’s LATIN LOVER is an uneven film that wins out due to the exuberance and life of its central performances and satire.
Perez
PEREZ represents a new a shift in direction for the classic Mafia film in its take on the legal system and individuals who try to control Italian organised crime.
Do You See Me
Riccardo Milani’s DO YOU SEE ME is an effective comedy tackling gender issues in the workplace, its success resting on the shoulders of its charming lead performance.
2014 in Review: The Best Festival Films
In continuing 2014 in Review, we look back at some of the best film festivals and festival features that were on show this year.
The Mafia Kills Only in Summer
Pierfrancesco Diliberto’s The Mafia Kills Only in Summer is a political satire which ultimately drops the ball in its tonal juggling act of comedy and drama, ending up being neither particularly funny nor dramatic.
Quiet Bliss
The title card for Quiet Bliss is overlaid on a curious wide shot where a street worker offers water to the film’s stressed leads. It’s a strange sight preceding a story with a similar theme (aid and dignity from unexpected places), but a sadly dissimilar and conventional tone. One of the leads, the patriarch of
I Can Quit Whenever I Want
Sydney Sibilia’s I CAN CAN QUIT WHENEVER I WANT – “Italy’s answer to Breaking Bad” – is an hilarious comedy that entertains and engages in spite of its many predictable elements.
Italian Film Festival Line-up Announced
The Lavazza Italian Film Festival is back again for its 15th edition, gracing Sydney’s Palace cinemas from 18 September to 12 October, with a diverse lineup of 34 new films plus a special Closing Night screening of a new 4K restoration of Vittorio De Sica’s 1964 classic Marriage, Italian Style.