Italian Film Series

A deep dive into Italian film history with Arizona State University lecturer Enrico Minardi. 

"Il Deserto Rosso" (1964 / 1h 56m) dir. by Michelangelo Antonioni

"Amid the modern wastelands and toxic factories of Italy, wife and mother Giuliana desperately tries to conceal her tenuous grip on reality from those around her, especially her successful yet neglectful husband, Ugo. Ugo's old pal, Corrado, shows up in town on a business trip and is more sensitive to Giuliana's anxieties. They begin an affair, but it does little to quell Giuliana's existential fears, and her mental state rapidly deteriorates." - Rotten Tomatoes

Cast: Monica Vitti, Richard Harris, Carlo Chionetti, Xenia Valderi

"Le Fate Ignoranti" (2001 / 1h46m) dir. by Ferzan Özpetek

"This film tells the story of an upper-middle class woman who has always lived in her husband's shadow, in a villa in a residential suburb of Rome. The husband's sudden death in a car accident makes her fall into a state of deep depression, from which she begins to emerge when by chance she finds out that her husband had always led a secret life parallel to their own. She then begins to investigate, searches for her husbands' friends and discovers a world which is completely new to her." - Rotten Tomatoes

Cast: Margherita Buy, Stefano Accorsi, Serra Yılmaz, Gabriel Garko

All movies shown with subtitles when available / Movies subject to change based on availability.