Yesterday, the screening cycle 'The Masters of Italian Comedy' was inaugurated in Vilnius. It is dedicated to the comic-satirical cinema of neo-realist matrix, which was born at the beginning of the 1960s and progressively established itself as one of the main directions of Italian cinematography during its economic boom.
The curator, Enrico Vanzina, took part in the opening of the exhibition, which was organised on the initiative of the Italian Embassy and the Italian Cultural Institute in Vilnius. He presented Italian comedy and the reasons that led to the choice of the six titles offered to the Lithuanian public.
"We decided to show films that recount the transformations of Italy from the end of World War II, when Italian comedy was born, to the last phase of its parabola at the beginning of the 2000s," said Vanzina, commenting on the films in the programme, among which Stano's "I tartassati", Dino RIsi's "Il sorpasso", Ettore Scola's "C'eravano tanto amati" and Carlo Vanzina's "Il Pranzo della domenica" stand out.
"Comedy is a genre that talks about the dramas of life by proposing survival techniques and breaking normality through laughter," said Vanzina. "But it is a genre that, in order to grow and flourish, needs a context free of dogmatic oppositions. Exactly the opposite of what we are facing today'.
Talking about the crisis of cinema, Vanzina emphasised how new technologies and new forms of communication have in fact made cinema only a marginal choice for younger audiences.
"There is a lack of young directors who, by creating narratives about themselves, are able to speak to the audience of their generation. There is a lack of new Verdone and Moretti,' the director added, reiterating the importance of an education in complexity to which cinema can contribute.
The festival will end on 2 May.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA
