The Oscars international feature film race got another strong competitor on Tuesday when Italy announced it would submit “Vermiglio” as its entry for the 97th Academy Awards. Written and directed by Maura Delpero, the film won the Silver Lion in Venice earlier this month.
Delpero’s drama is set in 1944 in the alpine village of the film’s title. When a young Sicilian soldier named Pietro (Giuseppe De Domenico) comes to town, his presence, according to the synopsis provided by Sideshow and Janus Films, “disrupts the dynamics of the local teacher’s family, changing them forever. During the four seasons marking the end of World War II, Pietro and Lucia, the eldest daughter of the teacher, instantly drawn to each other, led to marriage and an unexpected fate. As the world emerges from its tragedy, the family will face its own.”
Produced by Cinedora, Charades and Versus Productions, “Vermiglio” was acquired by Sideshow and Janus Films out of Venice, with a plan to release the film this year. In addition to De Domenico, it stars Martina Scrinzi, Roberta Rovelli and Tommaso Ragno. Delpero’s previous film, “Maternal” from 2019 (also her feature directorial debut), told the story of a teenage mother living in a home run by nuns in Buenos Aires.
The “Vermiglio” news came less than a week after France chose Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez” as its entry, which immediately put it in front-runner status. That film, a musical crime comedy about a Mexican cartel boss (Karla Sofía Gascón) undergoing sex reassignment surgery, made a splash at Cannes, where stars Gascón, Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz and Zoe Saldaña shared a best actress prize. It is considered a strong contender for Best Picture.
France leads all countries in the number of best international feature Oscar nominations and is second to Italy for the number of wins: France’s 9 vs. Italy’s 11. Among the storied Italian films that have won the category are “La Strada” (1956), “Nights of Cabiria” (1957), “8 1/2” (1963), “Amarcord” (1973) — and yes, plenty of movies not directed by Federico Fellini, including Vittorio De Sica’s “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow” (1964), Giuseppe Tornatore’s “Cinema Paradiso” (1988) and most recently, Paolo Sorrentino’s “The Great Beauty” in 2013. Last year, Matteo Garrone’s “Io Capitano” was nominated.
Leave a Reply