Italian Film Festival

The popular nation-wide Italian Film Festival is set to return to Hamilton in October showcasing 27 films and transporting audiences to the heart of Italy without leaving town!

The opening night film is the multi award-winning comedy Somebody to Love, Italy’s surprise number one box office hit last year. Chronicling the first date between Piero and Lara, it’s gatecrashed by a list of uninvited guests; the noisy ‘Italian chorus’ of emotions in their heads. 

Given five stars by New Zealand Listener film reviewer, Sarah Watt, it’s a take on a comedy romance and by far the most popular film at the festival to date.

Other festival stand outs so far include the ultra-lush and visually stunning, Diamante, which is set in the 1970s in the famous Roman fashion house, Canova. Also Bread and Tulips, the beloved international hit from 25 years ago that still delivers today, where mother and housewife Rosalba is left behind on a family holiday thus sparking a delightful solo adventure to Venice.

The surprise hit for orgnaiser, Paolo Rotondo, is The Tasters which is based on the recollections of 14 women who were forcibly rounded up to be the ‘tasters’ for Hitler’s meals during the last days of the Third Reich. The harrowing story is balanced by the remarkable acts of quiet resistance from this fragile sisterhood of women.

There’s also the political; La Grazia and The Great Ambition. Two westerns; Heads or Tails? and Once Upon a time in the West. Strong documentaries; Umberto Eco – A Library of the World, Ennio and The Sleeper – The Lost Caravaggio, plus many more in this year’s line-up.