Italian director Gabriele Muccino (The Last Kiss) directs this tale of a modern family who is on the verge of unraveling. On the surface, the Ristuccia family appears to have it all: Carlo (Fabrizio Bentivoglio) has a well-paying, secure job; Giulia (Laura Morante) is getting more beautiful with age; 18-year-old Valentina (Nicoletta Romanoff) has dreams of dancing stardom; and 19-year-old Paolo (Silvio Muccino) has fallen in love. But, as is the case with most things in life, desperation and hopelessness lie just around the corner. When Carlo bumps into a former flame (Monica Bellucci), the floodgates of passion are opened. Meanwhile, the other characters must confront demons of their own. After a near-fatal tragedy, the family is finally forced to confront its downward spiral. Muccino’s bittersweet drama critically yet empathetically captures the lives of these tender souls. He uses sweeping Steadicam cinematography to reflect the swirling emotions within each character, and layers the picture with stacks of pop music. But Muccino’s greatest talent lies in casting. As the conflicted Carlo, Bentivoglio shines, while Romanoff and Muccino (the director’s brother) are completely natural in their roles. But the film’s real standouts are Morante and Bellucci, two of the world’s most beautiful actresses, who somehow manage to present themselves with a heartbreakingly believable fragility. —Rotten Tomatoes
Gabriele Muccino (born 20 May 1967) is an Italian film director. He is the elder brother of actor Silvio Muccino, who often appears in his brother’s films.
Born in Rome, Gabriele Muccino gained success with films such as L’ultimo bacio (One Last Kiss) and Remember Me, My Love (Ricordati di me).
He is currently making a switch to directing Hollywood films after L’ultimo bacio won the Audience Award for World Cinema at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival bringing him to the attention of the American film industry. Muccino was handpicked by Will Smith to serve as the director of The Pursuit of Happyness. Muccino said in a later interview, “Will had to defend me as a choice to the studio; I could barely speak English and I could barely express my vision. I felt protected and that I could push my ideas even when they weren’t totally conventional. The reason why I found respect, and respect for my ideas, was because of Will.” Muccino also directed Smith’s later film, Seven Pounds… read more
The film has a fast pace, the attention gets stuck all the time. It is as if, in the doldrums of life of that family, eventually something will happen for everything to change suddenly, as if they were going through moments that were saving them, or who were proved to themselves and others, the validity of their projects, despite the family estate.
Chock-full of beautiful Italian actresses from extras to the main roles, but I found myself not really caring about any of the characters or their problems. It seemed like Laura Morante was being paid to change facial expressions every frame, which got to be a bit much. My favorite part was when Valentina gets the part and she's running home in slow-mo and some old song is playing.
