Closing Night: Mia Madre
Description
In Nanni Moretti’s latest moving and comedic work, a filmmaker named Margherita is directing a social-realist drama about a factory sit-in when her mother’s illness leads her to confront her own past. Divorced from the father of her teenage daughter and in the midst of breaking up with her current boyfriend, Margherita is reasonably confident on the set, but plagued by bad dreams and personal insecurity at home. When circumstances force her to move into her mother’s apartment, it compounds her existential crisis. Mia Madre compellingly delineates the burdens of balancing artistic and familial life while presenting a compelling tapestry of one woman’s experience, with a radiant central performance by Margherita Buy. Also radiating memorably around her are John Turturro as an over-the-top Hollywood actor named Barry Huggins, Moretti himself as the director’s brother Giovanni and Guilia Lazzarini as her mother Ada. Stylistically, Moretti is at the top of his game, mingling the intimate surrealism of Margherita’s nightmares and reveries with the more realistic details of her film set and the comedic and dramatic moments taking place both behind and in front of the camera.
Nanni Moretti is an internationally acclaimed director, writer, actor and producer. He was born in Bruneck and began directing films in 1973. His 2001 film The Son’s Room was awarded the Palme d’Or in Cannes while Mia Madre won the 2015 prize of the Ecumenical Jury. Some of his other noteworthy directorial efforts include Caro Diario (1993), The Caiman (2006) and Habemus Papam (NIC 2011). He frequently acts in his own films, but has also taken on roles for Antonello Grimaldi (Quiet Chaos, 2008), Mimmo Calopresti (The Second Time, 1995) and Daniele Luchetti (Il Portaborse, 1991).
Film Details
Language Italian, English
Year 2015
Runtime 106
Country Italy/France
Director Nanni Moretti
Producer Nanni Moretti, Domenico Procacci
Writer Nanni Moretti, Francesco Piccolo, Valia Santella
Editor Clelio Benevento
Cinematographer Arnaldo Catinari
Cast Margherita Buy, John Turturro, Giulia Lazzarini, Nanni Moretti
Print Source Alchemy