Any favorite Italian movies to get in the mood
 

Going to Italy this fall. Any good movies set in Italy?

agony & ecstasy

Roman Holiday (Audrey Hepburn, I think)<BR>Only you (Marisa Tomea & Robert Downey Jr.)

Bread and Tulips, a delightful Italian film that'll really put you in the mood!

Others will have tons of their own favorites, but I nominate "Life is Beautiful", "Much Ado about Nothing" and "Tea with Mussolini" near the top of my list.<BR><BR>Two others - - great for Venice - - but not such great movies in their own right are "Wings of the Dove" and "Dangerous Beauty".<BR><BR>For Tuscany, "Stealing Beauty" is in that same category, and another one about a young woman who aspires to be a painter in renaissance Italy as well. Anyone remember the title of that? Was it Artemisia?<BR><BR>Lots of others mentioned on this site.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

There are sooo many! Two of my favorites are Cinema Pardisio and Il Postiano. There was also the recent one where the Italian housewife runs away and rents an apartment in Venice, but I can't remember it's name! In my opinion Italy makes the most entertaining movies in the world.

Only You with Robert Downey Jr. and Marissa Tomei

EM Forster's classic "Room with a View", with the two grand dames of English Theatre, Maggie Smith and Judi Dench, as a hilarious double act

The movie with the Italian housewife who runs away to Venice is Bread and Tulips.

Malena<BR>Talented Mr. Ripley...

La Dolce Vita

I am wondering about what years these movies take place in? Someone suggested I see Life Is Beautiful, but it took place in 1939 and through WWII. I would like to see movies that depict Italy today, any suggestions for that? Thanks in Advance!

One more vote for "Bread and tulips". One of the best Italian movies of the last few years. Director Silvio Soldini is the brother of solo sailer Giovanni Soldini and is one of the leading directors of Italy. "Pane e tulipani" ("Bread and tulips") shows an Italy that is far from the usual touristy preception of Italy fut far closer to real Italy.<BR>Another coule or three suggestions are "La lingua del Santo" (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0206093) by Carlo Mazzacurati, "Le fate ignoranti" (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0274497) by Ferzan Ozpetek (the director is Turkis, but has been living in Italy for mos of his life), "Il ladro di bambini" (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0104663) and "Cos&igrave; ridevano" (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0139951) by Gianni Amelio, "Ferie d'agosto" (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0116296) by paolo Virz&igrave;, and "I cento passi" (http://us.imdb.com/Title?0238891) by Marco Tullio Giordana.

Enchanted April

Last Kiss (Florence).

Fun Thread.<BR>Just something of a warning I absolutely hated Stealing Beauty.<BR><BR>I liked Only You, Il Postino (wonderful cinematography), Cinema Paradiso (transition from old to new cinema how it mirrors Italian life), La Dolce Vita actually anything Frederico Felinni put out and with Marcella Mastrianie (sp) YUM!!! I will say it again YUM! … I think life is beautiful is beautifully filmed but it is so sad I think you have to be ready to be sad. As far as not seeing it because it takes place during WWII well you are still seeing a heavy Italian influence. The people that made this film live in Italy and you will feel this mood toward the visual, food, beauty etc when you are there. One a side note, TAKE ME WITH YOU!!!<BR><BR>I don't really like the English vacation in Italy movies for a sense of Italy. They are good for watching English movies. So many of them are about 19century elite visiting a resort, done to death. You want the Italian spirit rent an Italian movie. <BR><BR>The spirit is pretty much unchanged throughout all Italian movies. They might have a different focus but they capture passion well. I am not just speaking about a love passion but the spirit of passion. Many Italian movies capture a broad range of emotions, passions and sentiments. I think this unique to Italian film and what I love about the culture. <BR><BR>Only you the American film, is fun and several scenes are beautiful definitely rent but remember it's American you want to pick up the real thing also.<BR><BR>I don't know if you are in the NYC area but the NYC film festival is soon to be on at Lincoln Center. A film called "My Mother's Smile" is on, no word on it, only think it must be good if it made it to the festival. It was available for purchase(tickets Sat). It's Italian.

Alice Twain that is a wonderful list but how many of them are going to pop up at our local block buster? <BR><BR>Not sure if you are American but that looks like a tall order on what is often too small of a foreign isle in many U.S video rentals.

zootsi would love it if you remember that name!

Can't believe no one mentioned "A Room with a View" yet. <BR><BR>There is also the "English Patient"

X:<BR><BR>Blockbuster is shit ^_^ Can't you get them at some indipendent video rental? In any case, all these movie have been a major success here in Italy and all of them may hav been distributed in the Usa too, Check out for them because they are really good movies.

not every town has an independent video houses Alice Twain. Glad to get the suggestions but wanted to know if you knew how they could be found outside of the mainstream distributors.

beth a room with a view was mentioned and what about the English Patient moved you in the thought of Italy?

I have seen these Italy movie lists many times but no one includes one of my favs--Where Angels fear to Tread--with Helen Mirren and Helena Bonham Carter. Set in San Gim. with some great scenes. Check it out.

Bob sounds like another English movie about Italy perhaps that is why you are not hearing about it.

Great options...thanks for the help. Saw Stealing Beauty and have to say I rather enjoyed it. Life is Beautiful was wonderful.<BR><BR>Sorry Alice Twain, Blockbuster is pretty much my only option.

Unfortunately, most Italian films never get subtitled and distributed in the US, so even going to an independent video rental won't always help. For the ones that are available, try www.reel.com. You can do an advanced search by country and decade to find Italian films. The titles are usually given in English and not Italian! I looked and they do have some of Alice's recommendations, for example Il Ladro di Bambini ("The Stolen Children") and Cos&igrave; Ridevano ("The Way We Laughed"). Also some other enjoyable films like Everybody's Fine and Mille Bolle Blu.<BR><BR>I'm really lucky to live in an area where there's an Istituto Italiano di Cultura, film festivals, and a university film archives (currently hosting an Elio Petri series). Those are the kind of places where you're most likely to find the non-Blockbuster films.<BR><BR>But you know, I still like to watch Roman Holiday before I go to Rome!

No-one's mentioned Nanni Moretti's films. I liked 'Dear Diary' so funny and fantastic views of Rome from the back of Nanni's scooter. Goes to Stromboli, Lipari too

Thanks KT for info on Istituto Italiano di Cultura, in NYC yes? I think I am on their email list but I mainly receive stuff on speakers not film.

Sarah, actually I was referring to the Istituto in San Francisco. The Istituti are administratively attached to the Italian consulates, so I'd imagine that they exist in other cities with consulates (Chicago? Dallas??). The one in SF definitely does show films and co-sponsor films with other organizations like the Pacific Film Institute at UC Berkeley, as well as having speakers and other events.

Make that the "Pacific Film Archives," not Institute. In a former life I was in Washington, DC, and it took me years to stop referring to PFA as AFI (the American Film Institute, which is, of course, another great resource).

If you are thinking of Naples, you might as well see "The 7 Beauties," although it is really focused elsewhere. <BR><BR>I have heard of a movie called, "See Naples and Die," but even Netflix doesn't have it. Anybody?

yes we do have a NYC location Thanks so much for making sit up and notice this email.

Queen of Hearts, filmed in San Gimignano.<BR><BR>What was the name of the rather eerie one set in Venice about the young couple who went there after their daughter died, and they kept thinking that they saw her?-- "Don't look Now", or something like that?<BR><BR>Also, another set in Venice, I believe, about a young woman who was kidnapped as a child and was set up to entrap her father when he visited Venice some 20 yrs. later, etc. ( Yeah, I know, good thing I don't try to write movie reviews for a living!!)<BR><BR>

How about "Italian For Beginners?" It is a Scandinavian film w/ English subtitles. It is mostly set in the Scandinavian city where the characters live (sorry I can't recall just now whether they were Norwegian, Swedish or Danish). However, they travel to Venice toward the end of the movie and there is great scenery!

Sue, you're right, it's "Don't Look Now" with Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland, based on a Daphne DuMaurier story and guaranteed to give you the creeps.

Death in Venice

There was a Jack Lemmon movie back in the late '60s or early '70s called "Avanti". Not very deep stuff, but cute, funny and I think filmed on the Amalfi Coast.

I loved Stealing Beauty, you have to think between the lines, about her beauty being stolen by each character.<BR>The scenes of the villa and the villa where the party is held are what made us want to rent a villa in Tuscany, and we did.

A Room With a View, E. M. Forster's beautifully adapted novel is wonderful with Daniel Day Lewis in an unforgettable role as Cecil Vise and Denholm Elliot as the father of young muddled George saying, "Here is where the bird sings, here is where the sky is blue." Then of course you have Maggie Smith as "poor, poor Charlotte', not to mention Judi Dench. No wonder this movie won the National Board of Review Best Picture award in 1986.<BR><BR>Cinema Paradiso is the second movie I would recommend to you. I haven't seen the newly released director's cut but the original is a masterpiece.<BR><BR>Third would be the wonderful Bread and Tulips. A lovely hidden gem of a movie.<BR><BR>Buon appetito....

An Italian movie called "The Last Kiss" is playing in New York right now. I liked it a lot. It's not a scenery movie, but I felt it was really "Italian."<BR><BR> My idea for you for getting ready for your trip is, generate a good list of real Italian movies; make a pre-trip trip to New York; find a hotel room with a VCR; go to Kim's Video on 8th Street just east of 3rd Avenue and rent ten videos.<BR><BR> Or you can probably find a few to see here in theatres.<BR><BR> You can have pizza delievered to your room 3 times a day to keep the mood going & not waste viewing time going out of the building.