"Il Italian cinema it was a form of very high artistic craftsmanship. In the post-war period, cinema was among the most important things that Italy had: it was one of the pillars of our culture. Courses should be taken commedia all'italiana to tell how we lived, how we thought, how we loved in our country. Rediscovering this trend would also mean understanding how relations with the family, with politics, with the rest of society were experienced ”. These are some reflections of Enrico Vanzina, famous director and screenwriter, who a Lamezia Terme opened the fifth edition of Lamezia Film Fest.
Carlo and Enrico, the "award-winning Vanzina company"
The artistic director of the event Gianlorenzo Franzì he wanted to give great space to one of the most important authors of Italian cinema of the second half of the twentieth century who, together with his brother Carlo, certainly marked an era with his films. Films such as "Sapore di mare", "Under the dress nothing", "Eccezziunale really" were much loved by the public but also opposed by critics. Films that, today, are re-evaluated by the same critics and considered real cult.
At the Lamezia Film Fest, Vanzina talked about the cinema of today and yesterday, not sparing criticism of the young directors who are the most popular. “Today cinema is made up of very presumptuous directors, made up of young people often misled by a wrong idea of cinema that has forgotten comedy - said Vanzina - In reality, cinema is popular. Visconti, Rosi, Fellini made the cinema that entered our lives, our history. Theirs too was a popular cinema ”.
The cinema of today
For Steno's son "today cinema is repetitive, everyone makes comedies but, in reality, few people know how to do them". Another flaw of the current national filmography, according to Vanzina, is that “Italian cinema no longer has genre films, as it did in the past. There are no more historical films, thrillers, detective stories ”.
Speaking of the brother Carlo, recently passed away, Enrico Vanzina was moved and, with shining eyes, underlined: "We made important films until recently, until Carlo left me and broke me in half. Our works have told Italy with lightness. Ours was a serious and honest cinema. We didn't limit ourselves to comedy but we also wanted to experiment with other genres ”.
The Italian comedy of the Vanzinas: an ironic realism
The director and screenwriter defined the style of the filmography created with his brother Carlo "an ironic realism, different from post-war realism because he told with a smile the vices and virtues of the Italians". For Vanzina “cinema and theater are very important places for the cultural growth of a community. TV is undoubtedly important - he reiterated - but cinema tells reality much better than television ”.
The fifth edition of the Lamezia Film Fest he also dedicated an exhibition to Carlo Vanzina with photos exhibited in the rooms of the Cloister of San Domenico hosting the event these days. In addition, some of the most famous films made by the 'award-winning firm Vanzina', in the golden years of Italian comedy, were also screened. Enrico Vanzina was given the Award Ligeia made by the artist Antonio Pujia Venetian. The designer presented the award Anton Giulio Grande.
