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The Italian (2005 film)
Encyclopedia
The Italian is a 2005 Russian drama film
directed by Andrei Kravchuk
. The screenplay by Andrei Romanov, inspired by a true story, focuses on a young boy's determined search for his mother.
run by an alcoholic headmaster. When a wealthy Italian couple wanting to adopt
selects him, the other children, especially his good friend Anton, envy his good fortune and name him The Italian. But when a grief-stricken mother of another boy commits suicide after returning to reclaim her son and discovering he is no longer there, Vanya fears the same fate looms for him. With the aid of some of the older boys, he retrieves his file from the office safe and learns the address of the children's home he previously lived. Certain the records there will identify his mother, he sets off on his quest.
Pursuing him by car as he travels by train are the corrupt Madam, who brokered his adoption, and her driver Grisha. Upon arriving in the town where the home is located, Vanya is attacked and mobbed, but he breaks free and finds a bus that will take him to his destination. There he is confronted by Grisha, but he manages to elude him and make contact with the head of the home, who gives him his mother's address. Once again Grisha catches up with him, but when he realizes how determined Vanya is to find his mother, he lets him go. The boy is reunited with his mother. Through a letter Vanya wrote to Anton, who was adopted by the Italian couple instead, we learn Vanya is happy to be living with his mother again.
were cast as orphans in the film.
The film premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival
and was shown at the Taipei Film Festival
and the Buster Children's Film Festival in Denmark
before going into theatrical release in Russia. It was shown at the Telluride Film Festival
, the Toronto International Film Festival
, the Morelia Film Festival in Mexico
and the Paris Mon Premier Festival before going into limited release in the United States.
said, "The film’s director, Mr. Kravchuk, throws a beautiful, somewhat gauzy light over this world that gently softens its harder angles. There is something slightly magical about the lighting, almost as if this were a fantasy land from which Vanya might actually make an escape. This sense of unreality, of magical thinking and wishing, carries the story and Vanya through a remarkable journey . . . like something out of a film by Roberto Rossellini
, which is very high praise indeed."
Ruthe Stein of the San Francisco Chronicle
called the film "a deeply moving experience, alternately funny and sad" and added, "Based on a real incident, it has the ring of truth. Every detail feels right, from the chill of a Russian winter to the coldness displayed by adults profiting from a trade in orphans."
Leslie Felperin of Variety
observed, "Briskly helmed by feature debutant Andrei Kravchuk, [the picture] depicts the hard-knock life in a remote Russian children's home with stark realism, evolving smoothly into a taut adventure tale as [the protagonist
] hits the road in search of his mom. Possibly a bit too hard-hitting for more protected Western kids, [the picture] might appeal to subtitle-friendly tweens and teens in upmarket territories."
; the Cinekid Film Award at the 2005 Cinekid in Amsterdam
; and the Grand Prix at the 2005 Honfleur Festival of Russian Cinema in France
.
The film was Russia's submission for consideration in the category Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
at the 78th Annual Academy Awards.
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Andrei Kravchuk
Andrei Kravchuk
Andrei Kravchuk is a Russian television and film director and screenwriter best known for his 2005 film The Italian.-Career:...
. The screenplay by Andrei Romanov, inspired by a true story, focuses on a young boy's determined search for his mother.
Plot
Six-year-old Vanya Solntsev lives in a desolate, rundown, and rural Russian orphanageOrphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
run by an alcoholic headmaster. When a wealthy Italian couple wanting to adopt
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
selects him, the other children, especially his good friend Anton, envy his good fortune and name him The Italian. But when a grief-stricken mother of another boy commits suicide after returning to reclaim her son and discovering he is no longer there, Vanya fears the same fate looms for him. With the aid of some of the older boys, he retrieves his file from the office safe and learns the address of the children's home he previously lived. Certain the records there will identify his mother, he sets off on his quest.
Pursuing him by car as he travels by train are the corrupt Madam, who brokered his adoption, and her driver Grisha. Upon arriving in the town where the home is located, Vanya is attacked and mobbed, but he breaks free and finds a bus that will take him to his destination. There he is confronted by Grisha, but he manages to elude him and make contact with the head of the home, who gives him his mother's address. Once again Grisha catches up with him, but when he realizes how determined Vanya is to find his mother, he lets him go. The boy is reunited with his mother. Through a letter Vanya wrote to Anton, who was adopted by the Italian couple instead, we learn Vanya is happy to be living with his mother again.
Cast
- Kolya Spiridonov as Vanya Solntsev
- Mariya Kuznetsova as Madam
- Nikolai Reutov as Grisha
- Yuri Itskov as Headmaster
- Dima Zemlyanko as Anton
Production
Residents of the Lesogorsky Children's Home in LeningradLeningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
were cast as orphans in the film.
The film premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...
and was shown at the Taipei Film Festival
Taipei Film Festival
The Taipei Film Festival 台北電影節 is a film festival promoted by the city of Taipei, Taiwan, the Republic of China, through the Taipei City Department of Cultural Affairs....
and the Buster Children's Film Festival in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
before going into theatrical release in Russia. It was shown at the Telluride Film Festival
Telluride Film Festival
The Telluride Film Festival was started in 1974 by Bill and Stella Pence, Tom Luddy and Jim Card in the town of Telluride, Colorado, United States. It is operated by the National Film Preserve....
, the Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
, the Morelia Film Festival in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and the Paris Mon Premier Festival before going into limited release in the United States.
Critical reception
Manohla Dargis of The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
said, "The film’s director, Mr. Kravchuk, throws a beautiful, somewhat gauzy light over this world that gently softens its harder angles. There is something slightly magical about the lighting, almost as if this were a fantasy land from which Vanya might actually make an escape. This sense of unreality, of magical thinking and wishing, carries the story and Vanya through a remarkable journey . . . like something out of a film by Roberto Rossellini
Roberto Rossellini
Roberto Rossellini was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Rossellini was one of the directors of the Italian neorealist cinema, contributing films such as Roma città aperta to the movement.-Early life:Born in Rome, Roberto Rossellini lived on the Via Ludovisi, where Benito Mussolini had...
, which is very high praise indeed."
Ruthe Stein of the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
called the film "a deeply moving experience, alternately funny and sad" and added, "Based on a real incident, it has the ring of truth. Every detail feels right, from the chill of a Russian winter to the coldness displayed by adults profiting from a trade in orphans."
Leslie Felperin of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
observed, "Briskly helmed by feature debutant Andrei Kravchuk, [the picture] depicts the hard-knock life in a remote Russian children's home with stark realism, evolving smoothly into a taut adventure tale as [the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
] hits the road in search of his mom. Possibly a bit too hard-hitting for more protected Western kids, [the picture] might appeal to subtitle-friendly tweens and teens in upmarket territories."
Awards and nominations
The film won the Deutsches Kinderhilfswerk Grand Prix and the Glass Bear for Best Feature Film at the 2005 Berlin International Film Festival. Andrei Kravchuk won the CIFEJ Prize, awarded to the director of films especially designed for children or suitable for them, at the 2005 Carrousel International du Film in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
; the Cinekid Film Award at the 2005 Cinekid in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
; and the Grand Prix at the 2005 Honfleur Festival of Russian Cinema in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
The film was Russia's submission for consideration in the category Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
at the 78th Annual Academy Awards.