Languages Archives: Italian

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The Brutalist

  Brady Corbet

  United Kingdom     215 minutes

Synopsis

Escaping postwar Europe, visionary architect László Toth (Adrien Brody) arrives in America to rebuild his life, his work, and his marriage to his wife Erzsébet (Felicity Jones) after being forced apart by shifting borders and regimes during wartime. On his own in a strange new country, László settles in Pennsylvania, where the wealthy and prominent industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren (Guy Pearce) recognizes his talent for building. But power and legacy come at a heavy cost.

This film will be screened in 35mm.

  

 English, Hungarian, Yiddish, Hebrew, Italian with subtitles

Screenings & Events

Media

Film Credits

  •   Trevor Matthews, Nick Gordon, Brian Young, Andrew Morrison, Andrew Lauren, D.J. Gugenheim
  •   Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold
  •   David Jancso
  •   Lol Crawley
  •   Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn, Raffey Cassidy, Stacy Martin, Isaach De Bankolé, Alessandro Nivola
  •   Daniel Blumberg
  •   Carter Stanton, Aaron Himmel, Joshua Horsfield
  •   Brookstreet Pictures, Kaplan Morrison, Andrew Lauren Productions

Sponsors

Film Patron

Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation

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A close up of a man and woman, their faces barely making it entierly into the frame.

The Time It Takes Il tempo che ci vuole

  Francesca Comencini

  Italy, France     110 minutes

Synopsis

A filmmaker immerses his daughter in the magic of cinema, where chaos meets fantasy. This creates a deep bond that will sustain them through good and bad.

 Italian, French with subtitles

In Focus: Italy on Screen

the flag of ItalyThis film is part of the 60th Chicago International Film Festival’s In Focus: Italy on Screen collection, celebrating Italian cinema by harkening back to the best of the country’s filmmaking traditions while showcasing vibrant new work.

Learn more about this collection

Screenings & Events

Media

Film Credits

  •   Simone Gattoni, Marco Bellocchio, Beppe Caschetto, Bruno Benetti
  •   Francesca Comencini
  •   Francesca Calvelli, Stefano Mariotti
  •   Luca Bigazzi
  •   Fabrizio Gifuni, Romana Maggiora Vergano
  •   Fabio Massimo Capogrosso
  •   Kavac Film, Rai Cinema, Les Films du Worso, IBC Movie, One Art

Sponsors

With Support From

Logo: Cinecittà 288x60Logo: Italian Ministry of Culture 179x80Logo: Italian Cultural Institute - 200x100

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A woman in church looks over her shoulder

Vermiglio

  Maura Delpero

  Italy, France, Belgium     120 minutes

Synopsis

The majestic vistas of the Italian Alps make for a stunning backdrop, but Vermiglio is more concerned with studying the intimate landscapes of the human face than it is in admiring the view. Set in the final days of WWII, this handsomely realized period drama from director Maura Delpero (Maternal) chronicles a harrowing year in the life of three sisters, the daughters of a schoolteacher in a remote mountain village.

When Pietro, a deserter fleeing the approaching German army, arrives in their village, the sisters’ lives are forever changed — that of eldest daughter Lucia, who marries the handsome stranger, especially. But her younger siblings are affected by watching Lucia’s joys and struggles as a young, pregnant bride as well. Fresh off of its debut at the Venice Film Festival, Vermiglio is an affecting testament to the strength of women and the ties that bind.

 Italian with subtitles

In Focus: Italy on Screen

the flag of ItalyThis film is part of the 60th Chicago International Film Festival’s In Focus: Italy on Screen collection, celebrating Italian cinema by harkening back to the best of the country’s filmmaking traditions while showcasing vibrant new work.

Learn more about this collection

Screenings & Events

Media

Film Credits

  •   Francesca Andreoli, Carole Baraton, Tatjana Kozar
  •   Maura Delpero
  •   Luca Mattei
  •   Mikhail Krichman
  •   Tommaso Ragno, Giuseppe de Domenico, Roberta Rovelli, Martina Scrinzi
  •   Cinedora, Charades Productions, Versus Production

Sponsors

International Competition Program Patron

Jacolyn and John Bucksbaum Family Foundation

Film Patrons

Mary and Joseph Plauché

With Support From

Logo: Cinecittà 288x60Logo: Italian Ministry of Culture 179x80Logo: Italian Cultural Institute - 200x100

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Two women with matching hair, sunglasses, and bathing suits lie head to head by a pool.

Wishing on a Star

  Péter Kerekes

  Italy, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Austria, Croatia     99 minutes

Synopsis

Luciana, a trusted Italian astrologer, promises her clients a way to make their dreams come true: All they need to do is take a special birthday trip to a destination determined by their astrological profile. Sitting behind her computer, Luciana quickly types in some data. Out comes a client’s wish-fulfilling location, be it Taipei, Beirut, or Alaska. As Luciana’s customers — from fun-loving twins to an elderly woman — venture out, they discover fulfillment in the unlikeliest of places.

Mixing deadpan wit and bittersweet poignance, Slovak director Péter Kerekes (ChicagoIFF winner Cooking History) returns to the Festival with a wondrously stylized documentary that is as surprising and idiosyncratic as its central psychic. No matter what you think of Luciana’s practice, Wishing on a Star offers an authentically sensitive and universal portrait of the human desire for happiness—and the lengths people will go to find it.

 Italian, Friulian with subtitles

In Focus: Italy on Screen

the flag of ItalyThis film is part of the 60th Chicago International Film Festival’s In Focus: Italy on Screen collection, celebrating Italian cinema by harkening back to the best of the country’s filmmaking traditions while showcasing vibrant new work.

Learn more about this collection

Screenings & Events

Media

Film Credits

  •   Erica Barbiani, Lucia Candelpergher, Péter Kerekes, Vit Schmarc, Ralph Wieser, Vanja Jambrovic, Stefano Centini
  •   Erica Barbiani, Péter Kerekes
  •   Marek Šulík
  •   Martin Kollar
  •   Luciana de Leoni d’Asparedo, Valentina Angeli, Alessandra Fornasier, Barbara Lutman, Giovanni Rugo, Adriana Vangone, Giuliana Vangone
  •   Lucia Chuťková
  •   Videomante, Kerekesfilm, Artcam Films, Mischief Films, Restart, Volos Films

Sponsors

Comedy Program Partner

Documentary Program Partner

Logo: WTTW (2019)

Documentary Program Patron

Cynthia Stone Raskin

With Support From

Logo: Cinecittà 288x60Logo: Italian Ministry of Culture 179x80Logo: Italian Cultural Institute - 200x100

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A man in a red track suit holds up his hands, a man in black stands in front of him laughing and holding a gun.

Sicilian Letters Iddu

  Fabio Grassadonia & Antonio Piazza

  Italy, France     130 minutes

Synopsis

Sicily. Early 2000s. After serving several years in prison for Mafia-related crimes, Catello (Toni Servillo), a long-serving politician, has lost everything. When the Italian secret service prevails upon him to help capture the last major Sicilian Mafia boss Matteo (Elio Germano), who has been on the lam for three decades, Catello sees an opportunity to stage a comeback. A shrewd man of a hundred masks, Catello is a tireless illusionist and master manipulator, who turns truth into falsehood and falsehood into truth. As unique as it is improbable, Catello begins a correspondence with Matteo – using handwritten letters passed discretely to the fugitive with the intention of exploiting the younger man’s emotional shortcomings. It’s a gamble, one which, with one of the most wanted criminals in the world, involves a high degree of risk. Directing duo Fabio Grassadonia and Antonio Piazza (Salvo, Sicilian Ghost Story) return to the Festival with this mesmerizing addition to their wholly distinctive examination of the impact of Mafia culture on Sicilian civil society.

  

 Italian, Sicilian with subtitles

In Focus: Italy on Screen

the flag of ItalyThis film is part of the 60th Chicago International Film Festival’s In Focus: Italy on Screen collection, celebrating Italian cinema by harkening back to the best of the country’s filmmaking traditions while showcasing vibrant new work.

Learn more about this collection

Screenings & Events

Media

Film Credits

  •   Nicola Giuliano, Francesca Cima, Carlotta Calori, Viola Prestieri
  •   Paola Freddi
  •   Luca Bigazzi
  •   Toni Servillo, Elio Germano, Daniela Marra, Barbora Bobulova, Giuseppe Tantillo, Fausto Russo Alesi, Antonia Truppo
  •   Colapesce
  •   Indigo Film, Rai Cinema

Sponsors

With Support From

Logo: Cinecittà 288x60Logo: Italian Ministry of Culture 179x80Logo: Italian Cultural Institute - 200x100