The word diva is often used these days to denote bad behavior and outsized arrogance but in its original incarnation, it was coined to described someone whose artistic gifts were, in fact, divine….a gift from God. So, it is with this original interpretation that I acknowledge the presence at the Montreal World Film Festival of a true cinematic diva, the Italian actress Stefania Sandrelli.
Sandrelli has been part of the cinema firmament for over 60 years. As with her...
Billie August
Norwegian director Billie August (the winner of two Cannes Palme d'or prizes for the PELLE THE CONQUEROR in 1987 and THE BEST INTENTIONS in 1992) is the President of the Jury at this year's Montreal World Film Festival (running from August 26 to September 6).
The famed director and his jury colleagues will determine the Grand Prix des Ameriques, the Festival's most prestigious award, as well as winners for Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Be...
Massy Tadjedin’s Last Night, starring Keira Knightley, a romantic tale of sexual attraction, betrayal, and jealousy, will open the next International Rome Film Festival, running from October 28 to November 5, 2010, at the Auditorium Parco della Musica. Directed by Iranian-American Massy Tadjedin, with a star-studded cast featuring Keira Knightley, Eva Mendes, Sam Worthington, and Guillaume Canet, the film is set to kick off the competition section of the Official Selection. Another hotly-await...
by Sandy Mandelberger, Film New York Editor
With the tabloids on both sides of the Atlantic covering the nasty divorce spat between Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his former-actress wife (a spicy melange of adultery, illicit sex with teenage "models" and political corruption), the Italian penchant for soap opera and high drama continues unabated. Our on-going interest and curiosity about all things Italian c...
Friday, July 6------As the thermometer rises amid a July haze, the temperatures of moviegoers is also on the ascendant as the Brooklyn Academy of Music presents the white heat emanating from some of Italian cinema's sexiest and most seductive performers. SIGNORE & SIGNORE: Leading Ladies of Italian Cinema, which begins today at the BamCinematek, presents a fabulous array of talents, from international superstars to sultry temptresses to fast-talking firebrands. These are actresses who ...
