Dust Off Your DVD Player
and clear your calendar.
Salve ragazzi,
Even though the list of contemporary Italian movies is not so grand on the Netflix streaming side (except for ones that are actual Netflix productions) the list of DVDs they still offer is spectacular. There are so many, in fact, that Substack doesn’t even give me enough room here to tell you very much about them. I promise that in the next few weeks I will give you more information about the ones that I don’t want you to miss.
I have, as you see below, put a little 👍 by the ones that I find particularly notable, plus a few words of description. I honestly don’t see a single one on this list that I don’t recommend.
PS I don’t think this list is finished yet! I am still looking! More information about the films to come!
DVDs
L'Uomo Che Verrà (The Man Who Will Come) 👍 True story of the WWII Marzabotto Massacre.
La Grande Bellezza (The Great Beauty) 👍 2014 Academy Award for Best Foreign Film.
Suspiria (2018) Luca Guadagnino remake of Dario Argento horror classic.
Suspiria (1977) Original Dario Argento horror classic.
A Ciambra 👍 A real Romani family dramatizes its own life.
Dogman 👍 Matteo Garrone’s story of a dog groomer who hangs out with the wrong crowd.
Cesare Deve Morire (Caesar Must Die) Real life Roman prisoners put on a Shakespeare play.
Bella Addormentata (Dormant Beauty) Intertwining stories around the theme of euthanasia.
La Doppia Ora (The Double Hour) a thriller about a couple who meets speed dating.
La Sconosciuta (The Unknown Woman) 👍 A sex slave searches for a daughter who was taken from her and sold at birth.
Salvo A hit man finds it impossible to kill his latest victim.
Venuto Al Mondo (Twice Born) Love and war.
Non Ti Muovere (Don’t Move) 👍 A doctor becomes infatuated with a poor, young sex worker played by Penelope Cruz.
L’Amica Geniale (My Brilliant Friend) 👍 Ultimate coming of age binge-fest.
Mine Vaganti (Loose Cannons) A successful businessman’s son comes out of the closet.
Saturno Contro (Saturn In Opposition) A group of friends mourn the sudden death of one of them.
Pinocchio (2002) Roberto Benigni’s version.
Pinocchio (2020) Matteo Garrone’s version.
Martin Eden 👍 Italian adaptation of the Jack London book.
Reality A man tries out for a reality tv show.
Gomorra (Gomorrah) 👍 A movie about how the Camorra controls Naples, and the world.
Racconto Dei Racconti (Tale of Tales) Matteo Garrone’s English language uncensored (and violent!) fairy tales.
L'imbalsamatore (The Embalmer) An embalmer meets an unemployed waiter who becomes his assistant.
Caterina Va in Città (Caterina In The Big City) 👍 My favorite coming of age movie ever - stars Sergio Castellitto and Margherita Buy.
La Pazza Gioia (Like Crazy) Two patients in a psychiatric facility escape and take a road trip to settle some old business.
Il Capitale Umano (Human Capital) A guy on a bike is hit by a car and two families lives are changed forever.
La Prima Cosa Bella (The First Beautiful Thing) Complicated feelings after the death of a complicated mother.
Io Sono Amore (I Am Love) A wealthy Milanese man decides to let his son take over the business.
The Leisure Seeker Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren take a RV road trip.
Hungry Hearts Crunchy mom goes too far!
La Tigre e La Neve (The Tiger And The Snow) Roberto Benigni goes looking for the woman he loves in war torn Iraq.
La Vita è Bella (Life Is Beautiful) 👍 A man does creative things to protect his son when they are taken to a concentration camp.
La Stanza Del Figlio (The Son’s Room) 👍 A family tries to hold it together when a son dies unexpectedly.
Habemus Papam (We Have A Pope) The new pope has cold feet.
Mia Madre (My Mother) A well known director takes a look at her life while her mom is dying.
L’Ora Di Religione (My Mother’s Smile ) A man finds out that his mother had been considered for canonization.
La Scomparsa Di Mia Madre (The Disappearance of my Mother) A documentary about once-iconic fashion model wants to disappear into a world where she is never again seen in pictures.
Ricordati Di Me (Remember Me My Love) A family falls apart when a man cheats on his wife.
La Meglio Gioventù (The Best of Youth) 👍 This beautiful but LONG movie was originally a TV mini series about 2 brothers over 4 decades.
Miele (Honey) A woman helps terminally ill people end their lives.
Pane e Tulipani (Bread And Tulips) 👍 A woman is taken for granted by her husband and sons, so she runs away from home for a little adventure.
La Siciliana Ribelle (The Sicilian Girl) The true story of Rita Atria, a teen who testifies against the Mafia.
Vincere (Winning) 👍 Benito Mussolini’s early years, and the tragic story of his secret wife.
Giorni e Nuvole (Days and Clouds) Life falls apart harder and more drastically than a couple could have imagined when the husband loses his job.
Viaggio Sola (Five Star Life) A woman’s job is to pretend she’s a normal hotel guest and secretly report on the property.
Fuori Dal Mondo (Not of this World) A man in a park hands a nun a baby.
Luce Dei Miei Occhi (Light Of My Eyes) An infatuated man risks everything for a woman who cares very little for him.
Mio Figlio È Fratello Unico (My Brother is an Only Child) Two brothers are political and philosophical polar opposites.
Come Undone (Cosa Voglio Di Più) Extra-marital affairs are sometimes more trouble than they are worth.
Figlia Mia (Daughter of Mine) A 10 year old Sardinian girl’s mother has a secret that she’s having trouble keeping.
Vergine Giurata (Sworn Virgin) In very rural parts of Albania, a woman can give up her femininity and live as a man in order to enjoy the privileges a man has.
Giulia Non Esce La Sera (Giulia Doesn’t Date At Night)…because she’s in jail for murdering her lover.
Le Meraviglie (The Wonders) A family of hippie beekeepers find modern culture closing in on them.
Loro Toni Servillo plays former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Il Testimone Indivibile (The Invisible Witness) A man is accused of murder, but the the circumstances are very mysterious.
Favolacce (Bad Tales) The dark underbelly of life in the suburbs.
Terraferma An Italian fisherman and his family illegally helps illegal immigrants stranded on an overburdened raft.
Nuovomondo (The Golden Door) A Sicilian family emigrates to the new world in the early 20th century.
Sicilian Ghost Story 👍 Based on the true story of a young boy who is kidnapped and murdered by the Mafia when his father turns mafia informer.
Dillo Con Parole Mie (Ginger And Cinnamon) A girl and her aunt go on a vacation and both discover love.
La Bestia Nel Cuore (Don't Tell) A woman and her brother uncover a childhood trauma.
Baària Giuseppe Tornatore’s homage to his hometown in Sicily
La Finestra Di Fronte (Facing Windows) A bored and unhappy housewife gets her kicks watching the handsome guy across the street.
Agata E La Tempesta (Agata and the Storm) A man discovers he was adopted and goes looking for his birth family.
Il Traditore (The Traitor) 👍 True story of Tommaso Buscetta, a made man who is arrested and decides to testify against the mafia.
Buon Giorno Notte (Good Morning Night) The kidnapping and murder of Aldo Moro.
Call Me By Your Name 👍 Elio, a teenager, develops feelings for Oliver, his father's graduate assistant.
A Bigger Splash While vacationing on an island with her boyfriend, a rock star played by Tilda Swinton entertains an old flame.
We Are Who We Are American kids who live on a U.S. military base.
Sono Pazzo Di Iris Blond (Iris Blond) Carlo Verdone comedy about a down-on-his-luck singer who meets a young woman who boosts his career.
Ammore e Malavita (Love and Bullets) Musical Comedy Mafia movie
Il Divo 👍 Biopic of the Italian politician Giulio Andreotti, played by Toni Servillo.
Il Compleanno Di David (David’s Birthday) David’s uncle lusts after him and this movie borders on porn.
Angela true story of a Sicilian wife of a powerful mafia boss.
Vallanzasca Angeli Del Male (Angel of Evil) True story of Renato Vallanzasca, celebrity outlaw who outsmarted the police and was beloved by the public.
La Scorta (The Escort) About the men who risk their lives to protect judges in Mafia trials.
Io Non Ho Paura (I’m Not Scared) A kid finds another kid that have been kidnapped by his parents.
One more thing before I run out of room…
I just happened to notice that The Truffle Hunters is playing at our local art house movie theater in Cleveland, Ohio, so check and see if it is at yours.
The Truffle Hunters is about the aging men in Piemonte who hunt for the rare and expensive white Alba truffle. I know it doesn’t sound like much, but somehow, this little gem of a movie is amazingly magical!
Let me know if you have questions about any of the above movies. ❤️
Alla prossima,
Un bacione,
Cheri
America’s Cheerleader For Italian Cinema