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Interview with Gianvito Casadonte Near the Colosseum there's Monti (Vicino al Colosseo c'è Monti, 2007)Italy Director: Mario Monicelli Presentation: He was considered to be the master of the Italian comedy style, Commedia all'Italiana and from the 1930's until his death, Mario Monicelli directed over 60 films. The great director was behind such classics as Big Deal on Madonna Street, The Great War, For Love and Gold, and the My Friends series with Ugo Tognazzi and Philippe Noiret. He was nominated for two Academy Awards and was awarded a lifetime achievement award from the Venice Film Festival. Toward the end of his life, Monicelli was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He was admitted to a hospital in Rome where a few days later, he commited suicide by jumping from the window in his room. His death sent shockwaves through the film community, who wondered why such a great director would take his life at the age of 95. Throughout his life, it was apparent that Mario Monicelli loved his city, Rome. In this film, the director’s final film before his death, we follow the Italian director around the streets in his beloved city and see him interact in his neighborhood. Mario said that with this film, he wanted to show his city “not focusing on the emphatic and imperial tones, but focusing on the everyday life of its residents.” He certainly achieved that, as the film is an intimate look at a bustling city with so many hidden wonders. Synopsis: At number 29 of Rome's Via Dei Serpenti, right above the ice cream parlor known for its special "stracciatella" flavor, lives 95 year old Italian film director and screenwriter and one of the masters of the Commedia all'Italiana (Comedy Italian style): Mario Monicelli. His tiny loft, with its sixties-style blues and yellows, could easily be mistaken for a Swedish student's bed sit. Although it looks like he may be strolling through a small village, he is in fact in one of the most ancient boroughs of a bustling metropolis: Rome. |
