Venice, a hot day in early September
The vaporetto runs over a flat lagoon with silver reflections and tourists flock to it sweaty, gasping near the half-open windows while in the background the city flows like in a movie.
Finally we touch the ground, it is the Lido of Venice, the Pearl of the Adriatic as it was defined in the past.
The great beaches, the Liberty-style villas, the large hotels covered with majolica, here everything speaks of a not-so-distant past in which the small Venetian island was the favorite destination of actors and famous people from all over the world.
Many tell of curiosities about how everything has changed over the years, but at least for a week a year, the Lido returns to the way it was in the 30s when the Venice International Film Festival was born. In fact, just like during the Belle Epoque, here you can witness the arrival of many movie stars, perennially surrounded by onlookers looking for autographs and journalists ready to take pictures.
However, not everyone knows some important curiosities, that of Venice is the oldest film festival in the world, the first edition dates back to 1932, but despite the time that has passed, the crisis of the cinema and the economic crisis, this event still remains a milestone of Italian and international art, a wonderful showcase that has seen paraded on the red carpet stars of the big screen such as Vittorio de Sica, Anna Magnani, Alberto Sordi, Vittorio Gassman just to name a few, not to mention the directors who have made school in the world such as Fellini, Antonioni, Risi, Olmi or Visconti.
But this exhibition, even with a glorious past, has remained sparkling, innovative, aimed at collecting the best of world film production. This is demonstrated by films such as “La La Land” directed by the young director Damien Chazelle, who has already received the acclaim of critics and audiences, or as “Hacksaw Ridge” which marks the return to directing of Mel Gibson.
Great anticipation surrounds the screening of Paolo Sorrentino's latest film “Young Pope”, which will be followed on September 6 by Kim Rossi Stuart's “Tommaso”.
The highly anticipated remake of the "Magnifici Sette" directed by Antoine Fuqua, former director of films such as "King Arthur" or "Attack on power", is expected to close the festival.
As we have said, the Venice Film Festival is not just made up of the past, it is a lively event, which acknowledges the problems of the days in which we live. Precisely for this reason, the organizers of the exhibition have decided to put the spotlight on the story of the earthquake that hit Central Italy on 24 August, organizing a fundraiser for the reconstruction of the affected areas. In this regard, the following note was released: "The Venice Biennale participates in mourning, expresses deep condolences for the victims, as well as deep solidarity and closeness to the communities severely affected by the earthquake".
In short, it is a film exhibition that approaches with great sensitivity the mourning of a country, its losses, but it is not a resigned mourning, it is indeed full of strength, full of energy and an effort in which the whole nation participates, an Italy that still has so much to say, to do and that does not want to give up.
International exhibition of cinematographic art
