Italian Film Festival USA: Aspromonte: Land of the Forgotten

Italy/2019-directed by Mimmo Calopresti | 87 minutes 

In 1951, in Africo, a small village in the southern valley of Aspromonte, a woman dies in childbirth because a doctor fails to arrive on time. No road connects Africo with other villages. In the wake of this tragedy, all of the inhabitants put aside their work and unite to build their own road. Giulia (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi), the new school teacher arrived from the North, has another mission: to teach standard Italian to the local children to help them integrate with the rest of Italy.

But she will have to contend with local mafia leader, Don Totò (Sergio Rubini), who is determined to ensure that the town remains cut off and under his control. Director Mimmo Calopresti will be in attendance and will answer questions after the show.

"A vibrant portrait of an archaic world, where poor folk demanding basic rights are met with nothing other than indifference on the part of institutions, and the tyranny of local crooks who are allowed to lay down their own version of the law, Aspromonte is intended to be a tale that’s at once neorealistic and epic.” -Vittoria Scarpa, Cineuropa

The Italian Film Festival USA is the largest festival dedicated exclusively to contemporary Italian cinema in the United States. It presents new, feature-length comedies, dramas, documentaries and even short animated films. They all share iconic Italian locations and language that resonate with audiences worldwide, and offers Detroiters an opportunity to discover a new wave of young Italian film artists without hopping on a plane.

All films are in Italian with English subtitles. For the complete festival schedule visit italianfilmfests.org.  

The Italian Film Festival USA is presented under the auspices of the Consulate of Italy in Detroit. This activity is supported by the Michigan Arts & Culture Council and Detroit Film Theatre.