Here are the main films, with accompanying trailers, which are released in Italian cinemas on the occasion of the weekend of 11-13 June. Following there are also the issues of 3, while you have to click here if you are interested in reviewing those of May 27 (you can still see, for example, ‘Cruella’).
COMEDIANS (from 10 June)
Director: Gabriele Salvatores / Cast: Ale and Franz, Christian De Sica, Natalino Balasso
A group of aspiring comedians is ready to perform for the first time in front of an audience and after following a stand-up comedy course: the presence of a talent scout, who promises a place on television to those who choose, destabilizes everyone it prompts them to ask themselves whether to stick to their style and what they have studied, or to meet the recruiter’s vulgar tastes. ‘Comedians’ is the adaptation of a theatrical text that Gabriele Salvatores brought to the stage in 1985: some things are good, but the direction is too theatrical.
To find out more, read our in-depth analysis
RUN (from 10 June)
Regia: Aneesh Chaganty / Cast: Sarah Paulson, Kiera Allen, Pat Healy
A teenager confined to a wheelchair is cared for by a super-present mother, who acts as a teacher, cook and nurse: the girl begins to suspect that her mother is hiding something from her. ‘Run’ is a psychological thriller that has been well received by US critics thanks to the two protagonists and a tension that remains high all the time, despite some narrative passages being a bit obvious.
LASSIE COMES HOME (from 10 June)
Directed by: Hanno Olderdissen / Cast: Nico Marischka, Sebastian Bezzel, Anna Maria Muhe
A series of unfortunate vicissitudes force the Maurer family to get rid of the affectionate collie named Lessie: the dog, however, decides to embark on a long journey to return home and in particular to her beloved owner. ‘Lassie Comes Home’ is the remake of the film that launched Liz Taylor’s career in 1943: it is a light, enjoyable product to watch as a family.
THE PERFUMES OF MADAME WALBERG (from 10 June)
Regia: Grégory Magne / Cast: Emmanuelle Devos, Grégory Montel, Gustave Kervern
A chauffeur in a job and sentimental crisis is entrusted with the task of acting as a driver for a capricious client who works as a “nose” in the world of luxury perfumes. ‘The perfumes of Madame Walberg’ is a light and polite comedy, which makes the staging and the alchemy between the two protagonists its winning weapons.
CURSED SPRING (from 3 June)
Director: Elisa Amoruso / Cast: Micaela Ramazzotti, Giampaolo Morelli, Emma Fasano
A girl is forced to move to the Roman suburbs with her family: she doesn’t know anyone, she feels disoriented, her parents are not helpful, but meeting a two-year-old South American woman will change her life. ‘Cursed Spring’ is the first fiction film for the documentary filmmaker Elisa Amoruso and on the whole the local critics spoke well of it, albeit without enthusiasm.
To find out more, read our in-depth analysis
THE CONJURING – BY ORDER OF THE DEVIL (from 3 June)
Regia: Michael Chaves / Cast: Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ruairi O’Connor
A young man accused of murder declares himself innocent because if he committed the crime he did it under demonic possession: the spouses Ed and Lorraine Warren, investigators of the paranormal, investigate. ‘The Conjuring – By order of the devil’ is the eighth chapter of the horror franchise born in 2013: a well-made product that according to US critics revitalizes a saga that seemed to be in a crisis of ideas.
To find out more, read our in-depth analysis
ALL FOR UMA (from 2 June)
Director: Susy Laude / Cast: Pietro Sermonti, Pasquale Petrolo, Antonio Catania
Grandfather Attila’s family is unable or unwilling to take care of his winery and so a greedy and unscrupulous banking consultant steps forward in an attempt to grab it: will he succeed? ‘Tutti per Uma’ is a children’s film that draws heavily from similar film sources, but struggles to find its own way in a convincing way.
SUMMER ’85 (from 3 June)
Regia: Francois Ozon / Cast: Félix Lefebvre, Benjamin Voisin, Philippine Velge
While he is sailing with his sailing boat, Alexis overturns and risks drowning: he is rescued by David, who immediately seems to be the friend he has always dreamed of and, perhaps, something more. ‘Summer’ 85 ‘is a drama: not Francois Ozon’s best, but still a beautiful hymn to teenage love.
THE SHIFT (from 3 June)
Director: Alessandro Tonda / Cast: Clotilde Hesme, Adamo Dionisi, Adam Amara
Two radicalized students from a Brussels high school carry out an attack on their schoolmates and one of the two blows himself up: one of the ambulances that arrived on the scene loads a wounded boy, who turns out to be the perpetrator’s accomplice, too. wearing an explosive belt. ‘The Shift’ is a tense and non-trivial thriller, a valid debut for director Alessandro Tonda.
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