The year is sometime in the near future, apparently, and society has collapsed for vague reasons. Well, some of it has. Some of it hasn’t. Or maybe it only has if you squint really hard.
The Italian post-apocalyptic coming-of-age crime drama “Mondocane” is big on attitude but very short on details, presenting a world of violent gangs and oppressive police against a backdrop that’s so similar to what’s going on today, and so unexplored in all its sci-fi trappings, that one can’t help but wonder why it’s set in the future at all.
Dennis Protopapa, in his feature film debut, plays the title character, Pietro, who quickly earns the name “Dogworld” after he torches a pet shop to earn his place in a gang called “The Ants.” He’s grown up by the seashore with his best friend Cristian, and if you thought “Dogworld” was an unfortunate nom de guerre,...
The Italian post-apocalyptic coming-of-age crime drama “Mondocane” is big on attitude but very short on details, presenting a world of violent gangs and oppressive police against a backdrop that’s so similar to what’s going on today, and so unexplored in all its sci-fi trappings, that one can’t help but wonder why it’s set in the future at all.
Dennis Protopapa, in his feature film debut, plays the title character, Pietro, who quickly earns the name “Dogworld” after he torches a pet shop to earn his place in a gang called “The Ants.” He’s grown up by the seashore with his best friend Cristian, and if you thought “Dogworld” was an unfortunate nom de guerre,...
- 5/21/2022
- by William Bibbiani
- The Wrap
Sometimes it can be a little sad to watch a director blatantly make a bid for mainstream American acceptance (or rather future Marvel gig), and in the case of Mondocane (Italian for Dogworld) this couldn’t be more apparent. What seemed an exciting prospect, a potential throwback to trashy Italian post-apocalyptic films (or just a bleak arthouse sci-fi), Alessandro Celli’s feature debut rather feels like minor adjustments to an ’80s Amblin fantasy film above all––a few more blatant references to child molestation notwithstanding. Though perhaps having children as the protagonists should’ve been the tip-off to what flavor of sci-fi adventure we’d be getting, one still replete with sleek nighttime motorcycle chases and gunfire to feel just “modern” or “adult” enough.
A brief title crawl informs us the Italian town of Taranto is now a wasteland devastated by climate change, a power plant blotting the skyline and barbed wire guarding the borders.
A brief title crawl informs us the Italian town of Taranto is now a wasteland devastated by climate change, a power plant blotting the skyline and barbed wire guarding the borders.
- 5/19/2022
- by Ethan Vestby
- The Film Stage
The stakes at the center of “Mondocane” aren’t without importance or tragedy: two boys search in the rubble of civilization for wealth, safety, and friendship. Owing to the lineage began by “Lord of the Flies,” this dreary and distant tale, backgrounded by glittering seas and abandoned buildings, should follow in the footsteps of Kim Nguyen’s harrowing film “War Witch” or Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire’s shocking “Johnny Mad Dog” — two movies about wayward children navigating harsh environments rendered harsher due to their age. But
In his narrative debut feature, Celli and co-writer Antonio Leotti have clearly taken all of the notes: The messianic leader who’s far less virtuous than he appears to be is there, as are the common initiations requiring children to lose their humanity and innocence to harden them. There’s even the girl who comes between two friends. Those familiar pieces, however, are shaken up and jumbled,...
In his narrative debut feature, Celli and co-writer Antonio Leotti have clearly taken all of the notes: The messianic leader who’s far less virtuous than he appears to be is there, as are the common initiations requiring children to lose their humanity and innocence to harden them. There’s even the girl who comes between two friends. Those familiar pieces, however, are shaken up and jumbled,...
- 5/19/2022
- by Robert Daniels
- Indiewire
"We weren't meant to be here. We're Ants or have you forgotten?" Kino Lorber has revealed an official US trailer for a film from Italy titled Mondocane, which premiered at Critics Week at the Venice Film Festival last year. The title translates to Dogworld in English, describing this "proto-cyberpunk" post-apocalyptic film set in a city called Taranto. In the near future, Taranto is a ghost town surrounded by barbed wire that no one, not even the police, dares to enter. The poorest are left fighting for survival, while gangs compete for territory. Two 13-year-old orphans, who grew up together, dream of joining one of the gangs. "Recalling everything from Mad Max to Lord of the Flies to City of God, director Alessandro Celli's thrilling feature debut is a stylish post-apocalyptic vision and an inspiring testament to the power of friendship in an unjust world." This stars Dennis Protopapa, Giuliano Soprano,...
- 4/15/2022
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
“My Brilliant Friend” is set to close the book on Elena and Lila’s journey. The Italian- and Neapolitan-language television series has been renewed for a fourth and final season by co-producers HBO and Rai.
Based on the acclaimed “Neapolitan Novels” four-book series by Italian writer Elena Ferrante, “My Brilliant Friend” follows the coming-of-age of two best friends, Elena Greco and Lila Cerullo, who grow up in a poor Naples neighborhood in the 1950s. As the smart-but-shy Elena continues her education and eventually ascends into the wealthy elite, the outspoken Lila is denied schooling by her family and struggles through an abusive marriage. The show, which is named after the first novel in Ferrante’s series, has adapted each book into an eight-episode season, with the fourth season set to adapt the final installment, “The Story of the Lost Child.”
The first three seasons of “My Brilliant Friend” have starred...
Based on the acclaimed “Neapolitan Novels” four-book series by Italian writer Elena Ferrante, “My Brilliant Friend” follows the coming-of-age of two best friends, Elena Greco and Lila Cerullo, who grow up in a poor Naples neighborhood in the 1950s. As the smart-but-shy Elena continues her education and eventually ascends into the wealthy elite, the outspoken Lila is denied schooling by her family and struggles through an abusive marriage. The show, which is named after the first novel in Ferrante’s series, has adapted each book into an eight-episode season, with the fourth season set to adapt the final installment, “The Story of the Lost Child.”
The first three seasons of “My Brilliant Friend” have starred...
- 3/22/2022
- by Wilson Chapman
- Variety Film + TV
ITV has revealed a first look at “Romulus 2,” the second season of Cattleya’s innovative Rome origins skein enacted in archaic Latin.
The outfit is also launching global sales on the series, which has just wrapped shooting and is being touted as more “fast paced and in your face” than the first instalment, as Lisa Perrin, the company’s chief of international productions, puts it.
The first season of the lavish Sky Italy original produced by Sky and Cattleya — which is owned by ITV Studios — in collaboration with show runner Matteo Rovere’s Groenlandia shingle, has now attained cult status, if not stellar ratings, in Italy. It won this year’s Silver Ribbon prize given by Italy’s critics for best Italian series made for the international market.
The second serving of “Romulus” — for which there is not yet a firm Italian launch date on Sky — has several new young...
The outfit is also launching global sales on the series, which has just wrapped shooting and is being touted as more “fast paced and in your face” than the first instalment, as Lisa Perrin, the company’s chief of international productions, puts it.
The first season of the lavish Sky Italy original produced by Sky and Cattleya — which is owned by ITV Studios — in collaboration with show runner Matteo Rovere’s Groenlandia shingle, has now attained cult status, if not stellar ratings, in Italy. It won this year’s Silver Ribbon prize given by Italy’s critics for best Italian series made for the international market.
The second serving of “Romulus” — for which there is not yet a firm Italian launch date on Sky — has several new young...
- 12/7/2021
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
Not long ago, Ludovica Nasti was just a ‘regular’ kid. All of that changed, however, when she was cast in the HBO series My Brilliant Friend. The show quickly became an international success and essentially turned Ludovica into an international celebrity. Although her time on the show has come to an end, she’s ready to show the world that she’s here to stay. She’s kept the momentum rolling with other acting opportunities and she also has some upcoming projects in the works. Being a young person in the entertainment industry isn’t easy, but Ludovica is determined to build a long-lasting
10 Things You Didn’t Know about Ludovica Nasti...
10 Things You Didn’t Know about Ludovica Nasti...
- 5/5/2021
- by Camille Moore
- TVovermind.com
Marcello Sannino’s debut work wins the festival’s first edition, while its protagonist Ivana Lotito scoops the Best Actress accolade. Rose Stone Star, Marcello Sannino’s debut work starring Ivana Lotito, Ludovica Nasti and Fabrizio Rongione, has walked away with the award for Best Film at the first ever edition of the Matera Film Festival: “For the pertinence of its subject matter – the jury’s statement explains – addressed within a coherent structure which tells a wholly female story of survival in uncliched fashion. The film’s measured mise en scene, which is never intrusive, is complemented by a sincere and moving acting performance”. Indeed, protagonist Ivana Lotito was awarded the trophy for Best Actress. The film is produced by Antonella Di Nocera (Parallelo 41 Produzioni), Gaetano Di Vaio and Giovanna Crispino (Bronx Film) and Pier Francesco Aiello alongside Rai Cinema. Released in cinemas in late...
To mark the release of My Brilliant Friend on 3rd August, we’ve been given 2 copies to give away on DVD.
Elena Greco is an elderly writer whose best friend Lila has disappeared without a trace, so Elena begins to write the story of their lives growing up together in a mob-ruled, poverty-stricken neighbourhood in 1950s Naples. As children, Elena (Elisa Del Genio) and Lila’s (Ludovica Nasti) friendship is put to the test as financial disparities provide them with very different opportunities in life. Lila’s writing genius is stifled after her parents can no longer afford further education and put her to work, while Elena flourishes in school, no longer in the shadow of her friend’s brilliance.
The second series follows Elena (Margherita Mazzucco) and Lila (Gaia Girace) as adolescents into the Swinging Sixties, where this fierce, complex friendship must endure romantic rivalry and shocking violence, as...
Elena Greco is an elderly writer whose best friend Lila has disappeared without a trace, so Elena begins to write the story of their lives growing up together in a mob-ruled, poverty-stricken neighbourhood in 1950s Naples. As children, Elena (Elisa Del Genio) and Lila’s (Ludovica Nasti) friendship is put to the test as financial disparities provide them with very different opportunities in life. Lila’s writing genius is stifled after her parents can no longer afford further education and put her to work, while Elena flourishes in school, no longer in the shadow of her friend’s brilliance.
The second series follows Elena (Margherita Mazzucco) and Lila (Gaia Girace) as adolescents into the Swinging Sixties, where this fierce, complex friendship must endure romantic rivalry and shocking violence, as...
- 7/11/2020
- by Competitions
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
To mark the release of My Brilliant Friend on 18th March, we’ve been given a copy to give away on Blu-ray.
When the most important friend in her life seems to have disappeared without a trace, Elena Greco, a now elderly woman immersed in a house full of books, turns on her computer and starts writing the story of their friendship. She met Raffaella Cerullo (Ludovica Nasti and Gaia Girace), whom she has always called Lila, in the first year of primary school in 1950. Set in a dangerous and fascinating Naples, their story begins and goes on to cover over 60 years of their lives as she tries to describe the mystery of Lila, Elena’s brilliant friend and – in a way – her best friend, and her worst enemy.
Please note: This competition is open to UK residents only
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The Small Print
Open to UK residents only...
When the most important friend in her life seems to have disappeared without a trace, Elena Greco, a now elderly woman immersed in a house full of books, turns on her computer and starts writing the story of their friendship. She met Raffaella Cerullo (Ludovica Nasti and Gaia Girace), whom she has always called Lila, in the first year of primary school in 1950. Set in a dangerous and fascinating Naples, their story begins and goes on to cover over 60 years of their lives as she tries to describe the mystery of Lila, Elena’s brilliant friend and – in a way – her best friend, and her worst enemy.
Please note: This competition is open to UK residents only
a Rafflecopter giveaway
The Small Print
Open to UK residents only...
- 3/11/2019
- by Competitions
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
When Saverio Costanzo, the director of HBO and Rai’s “My Brilliant Friend,” started to plan how he would depict the grand but gritty city of Naples — one that’s so vivid in the imaginations of millions of Elena Ferrante readers, he quickly decided that the working-class neighborhood at the core of her four Neapolitan novels had to be fictional.
“Our starting point was always the fake city,” he says, noting that precisely because no other city in Italy has such a strong identity, keeping the right distance from Naples was what enabled him to represent it so intensely.
The drab ’hood called Rione Luzzatti was reconstructed on the grounds of an abandoned glass factory in Caserta, about 20 miles north of Naples, a roughly 5-acre converted space that’s become among the largest sets in Europe. Production designer Giancarlo Basili and local craftsmen built many of the story’s most...
“Our starting point was always the fake city,” he says, noting that precisely because no other city in Italy has such a strong identity, keeping the right distance from Naples was what enabled him to represent it so intensely.
The drab ’hood called Rione Luzzatti was reconstructed on the grounds of an abandoned glass factory in Caserta, about 20 miles north of Naples, a roughly 5-acre converted space that’s become among the largest sets in Europe. Production designer Giancarlo Basili and local craftsmen built many of the story’s most...
- 1/18/2019
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
My Brilliant Friend is heading to China after digital platform iQIYI struck a deal with distributor Fremantle International.
My Brilliant Friend is the tale of Elena Greco and the most important friend in her life. She met Raffaella Cerullo, whom she has always called Lila, in the first year of primary school in 1950. Set in a dangerous and fascinating Naples, their story goes on to cover more than 60 years of their lives and explores the mystery of Lila, Elena’s brilliant friend and – in a way – both her best friend and her worst enemy.
Filmed in Italian, the eight-episode first season stars newcomers Elisa Del Genio and Ludovica Nasti as the younger versions of Elena and Lila, while Margherita Mazzucco and Gaia Girace portray teenage versions of the characters. All episodes are directed by Saverio Costanzo.
My Brilliant Friend is an HBO, Rai Fiction and Timvision series, produced by Lorenzo Mieli...
My Brilliant Friend is the tale of Elena Greco and the most important friend in her life. She met Raffaella Cerullo, whom she has always called Lila, in the first year of primary school in 1950. Set in a dangerous and fascinating Naples, their story goes on to cover more than 60 years of their lives and explores the mystery of Lila, Elena’s brilliant friend and – in a way – both her best friend and her worst enemy.
Filmed in Italian, the eight-episode first season stars newcomers Elisa Del Genio and Ludovica Nasti as the younger versions of Elena and Lila, while Margherita Mazzucco and Gaia Girace portray teenage versions of the characters. All episodes are directed by Saverio Costanzo.
My Brilliant Friend is an HBO, Rai Fiction and Timvision series, produced by Lorenzo Mieli...
- 12/7/2018
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
HBO and Italian broadcaster Rai have renewed “My Brilliant Friend” for a second season ahead of the Season 1 finale.
The eight-episode first season of the show is based on Elena Ferrante’s best-selling book of the same name, which is the first of her four-part series published in the U.S. by Europa Editions. Season 2 will be based on “The Story of a New Name,” her second book in the series.
“We’re thrilled that Elena Ferrante’s epic story has resonated so powerfully with viewers and critics, and we look forward to the continuing journey of Elena and Lila,” said Casey Bloys, president of HBO Programming.
The series is the tale of Elena Greco and the most important friend in her life. She met Raffaella Cerullo, whom she has always called Lila, in the first year of primary school in 1950. Set in Naples, their story goes on to cover...
The eight-episode first season of the show is based on Elena Ferrante’s best-selling book of the same name, which is the first of her four-part series published in the U.S. by Europa Editions. Season 2 will be based on “The Story of a New Name,” her second book in the series.
“We’re thrilled that Elena Ferrante’s epic story has resonated so powerfully with viewers and critics, and we look forward to the continuing journey of Elena and Lila,” said Casey Bloys, president of HBO Programming.
The series is the tale of Elena Greco and the most important friend in her life. She met Raffaella Cerullo, whom she has always called Lila, in the first year of primary school in 1950. Set in Naples, their story goes on to cover...
- 12/4/2018
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
HBO and Rai have ordered a second season of the critically praised series My Brilliant Friend.
The eight-episode first season is based on Elena Ferrante’s bestselling book of the same name, which is the first of her four-part series published in the U.S. by Europa Editions. Season 2 will be based on The Story of a New Name, her second book in the series. A start date for production has not yet been announced.
“We’re thrilled that Elena Ferrante’s epic story has resonated so powerfully with viewers and critics, and we look forward to the continuing journey of Elena and Lila,” said Casey Bloys, president, HBO Programming, in announcing the news Tuesday.
“Rai is deeply proud of the extraordinary success of My Brilliant Friend. It’s an important milestone that confirms our commitment to focusing on international co-production, as well as on the value of Italian talent,...
The eight-episode first season is based on Elena Ferrante’s bestselling book of the same name, which is the first of her four-part series published in the U.S. by Europa Editions. Season 2 will be based on The Story of a New Name, her second book in the series. A start date for production has not yet been announced.
“We’re thrilled that Elena Ferrante’s epic story has resonated so powerfully with viewers and critics, and we look forward to the continuing journey of Elena and Lila,” said Casey Bloys, president, HBO Programming, in announcing the news Tuesday.
“Rai is deeply proud of the extraordinary success of My Brilliant Friend. It’s an important milestone that confirms our commitment to focusing on international co-production, as well as on the value of Italian talent,...
- 12/4/2018
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
“My Brilliant Friend” is exactly the kind of story TV needs to explore, but it’s told in a way that ensures fewer will be made. Focusing on a deeply relatable friendship between two girls in 1950s Italy, the eight-part HBO adaptation digs into the personal observations of characters typically marginalized in stories of the era. The girls are the leads and their friendship forms the journey; boys, men, and their affairs are pushed to the periphery. While the series captures dynamics of adoration and jealousy that rarely have the spotlight, director and writer Saver Costanzo, as well as fellow writers Francesco Piccolo and Laura Paolucci, fail to translate Elena Ferrante’s bestselling, four-novel franchise into an enthralling onscreen experience.
Faithful to a fault, much of the impact is lost in translation. Narration becomes a crutch, direction is bland, and pacing is sluggish. Frustrations like these will likely turn off...
Faithful to a fault, much of the impact is lost in translation. Narration becomes a crutch, direction is bland, and pacing is sluggish. Frustrations like these will likely turn off...
- 11/15/2018
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
The title character of HBO’s My Brilliant Friend is Lila Cerullo, a shoemaker’s daughter in a poor neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples in the Fifties. Defying all odds of both nature and nurture, she is a prodigy who masters whatever task she sets her mind to, usually without any outside instruction. As an elementary schooler, she reads Little Women and is inspired to write her own novel. Best friend Elena “Lenu” Greco reads it and is amazed by how naturally Lila articulates all her points.
The adult Elena,...
The adult Elena,...
- 11/14/2018
- by Alan Sepinwall
- Rollingstone.com
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