''The Life Apart'' (Italian: ''La vita accanto'') is a 2024 Italian drama film co-written and directed by

Marco Tullio Giordana Marco Tullio Giordana (born 1 October 1950) is an Italian film director and screenwriter. Biography Born in Milan, during the 1970s he approached the cinema by collaborating on the screenplay of Roberto Faenza's 1977 documentary ''Forza Itali ...

, starring Sonia Bergamasco and

Valentina Bellè Valentina Bellè (born 16 April 1992) is an Italian actress. Biography Born in Verona from an Italian father and a German mother, as a child she showed interest in art and studied acting. After finishing high school, Valentina worked as a model, ...

. The film was released in Italian cinemas on 22 August 2024.

Plot

Vicenza Vicenza ( , ; or , archaically ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, where it straddles the Bacchiglione, River Bacchiglione. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and e ...

, 1980. When Maria discovers she is pregnant, she happily announces her pregnancy to her husband Osvaldo. Everything goes well until the baby girl, who they will call Rebecca, is born with a large red spot on her face.

Cast

* Sonia Bergamasco as Erminia Macola *

as Maria Macola * Paolo Pierobon as Osvaldo Macola * Beatrice Barison as Rebecca Macola :*

Sara Ciocca Sara Ciocca (born 30 January 2008) is an Italian actress and voice actress. Life and career Born in Rome to parents from Riccia, Molise, Riccia, in Molise, she has been studying classical dance, modern jazz, contemporary dance, and piano since th ...

as Rebecca Macola at 10 :* Viola Basso as Rebecca Macola at 6 *

Michela Cescon Michela Cescon (; born 13 April 1971) is an Italian actress. Her film credits include '' Piazza Fontana: The Italian Conspiracy'', '' Salty Air'', '' Viva la libertà'', ''Quando sei nato non puoi più nasconderti'', '' First Love'' and ''Tulpa ...

as Lucilla's mother * Alessandro Bressanello as the priest *

Luigi Diberti Luigi Diberti (born 29 September 1939) is an Italian actor and dubber. After graduating from the National Academy of Dramatic Arts in Rome, he first appeared in small theater roles before having his breakout in 1968 with Luca Ronconi's ''L'Orl ...

as the doctor * Angela Fontana as the policewoman at the airport

Production

The film is based on the novel with the same name by . Giordana became involved in the project through screenwriter and producer

Marco Bellocchio Marco Bellocchio (; born 9 November 1939) is an Italian film director, screenwriter, and actor. Life and career Born in Bobbio, near Piacenza, Marco Bellocchio had a strict Catholic upbringing – his father was a lawyer, his mother a schooltea ...

. Principal photography started in

in July 2023.

Release

The film premiered out of competition at the

77th Locarno Film Festival The 77th Locarno Film Festival was held from 7 August to 17 August 2024. '' The Crowd'' by King Vidor, accompanied by live music from the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, screened the night before the festival began, and '' The Flood'' by Gian ...

. It was released in Italian cinemas on 22 August 2024.

Reception

Matthew Joseph Jenner from ''

International Cinephile Society The International Cinephile Society is an online organization of professional film critics and journalists worldwide. It was founded in 2003 and, has approximately 170 members—among them are Mike D'Angelo, Justin Chang (''Los Angeles Times'') ...

'' gave the film a 3½ out of 5 rating, noting that "Giordana has made a film that is essentially told in tragedies and melodies, with a simple premise that touches on many complex ideas in a way that is incredibly striking. The film manages to be simultaneously sweeping in scope and intimate in emotion, which it achieves through focusing on the most raw and heart-wrenching depictions of the experiences of the protagonist and her family as they navigate the uncertain path that lies before them. This creates an unusual but undeniably moving depiction of the passage of time, as well as providing an oddly optimistic outlook". ''

Cineuropa Cineuropa is an online information portal dedicated to the promotion of European cinema. It publishes daily news, reviews, interviews, and industry reports and maintains a database of information. It is available in four languages: English, Fre ...

s Camillo De Marco wrote: "Bellocchio's writing can definitely be gleaned in some of the film’s dramatic emphases, notably the obsession with family relations and the hypocrisies of religion. But Giordana's adaptation of the text “adjusts” the movie's approach to explore the body, human weakness and the impossibility of communicating via a film about things unsaid, which is why the choice and direction of the cast was so crucial".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Life Apart, The 2024 films 2024 drama films Italian drama films Films directed by Marco Tullio Giordana Films scored by Dario Marianelli