Nuovo cinema Paradiso (1988)

User Rating:

8.4/10   

Director:

Giuseppe Tornatore

Writers:

Giuseppe Tornatore (story)
Giuseppe Tornatore (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

23 February 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

A celebration of youth, friendship, and the everlasting magic of the movies.

Plot:

A filmmaker recalls his childhood, when he fell in love with the movies at his village's theater and formed a deep friendship with the theater's projectionist.

Plot Keywords:

Boy | Village | Projectionist | Theater | Film Making

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 19 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Antonella Attili	...	Maria Di Vita - Younger
Enzo Cannavale	...	Spaccafico
Isa Danieli	...	Anna
Leo Gullotta	...	Usher
Marco Leonardi	...	Salvatore 'Toto' Di Vita - Teenager
Pupella Maggio	...	Maria Di Vita - Older
Agnese Nano	...	Elena Mendola
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Father Adelfio
Salvatore Cascio	...	Salvatore 'Toto' Di Vita - Child
Tano Cimarosa	...	Blacksmith
Nicola Di Pinto	...	Village Idiot
Roberta Lena	...	Lia
Nino Terzo	...	Peppino's Father
Jacques Perrin	...	Salvatore 'Toto' Di Vita - Adult
Philippe Noiret	...	Alfredo

Also Known As:

Cinema Paradiso (Australia) (France) (UK) (USA)
Cinéma Paradiso (France)
Cinema Paradiso: The New Version (USA) (director's cut)

MPAA:

Rated R for some sexuality. (director's cut)

Runtime:

155 min | Italy:170 min (extended version) | 124 min (International version)

Country:

Italy | France

Language:

Italian | English | Portuguese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:15 (director's cut) | Spain:T | South Korea:All (original rating) | West Germany:12 (f) | Italy:T | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG | Chile:TE | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Norway:10 | Peru:PT | Singapore:M18 (director's cut) | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:15 (director's cut) | UK:PG | USA:PG (original rating) | USA:R (director's cut) (2002)

Filming Locations:

Bagheria, Palermo, Sicily, Italy

Company:

Cristaldifilm

Trivia:

Director Cameo: [Giuseppe Tornatore]the person working the projection machine when Salvatore is watching the compilation of scenes that Alfredo made for him

Goofs:

Factual errors: When the subtitles are shown for the film "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" it reads "Unforgivable songs" rather than "Unforgettable songs"

Quotes:

Salvatore 'Toto' Di Vita - Adult: Elena, perhaps in the future we could...
Elena Mendola - Adult, Director's cut only: No, Salvaotre, there is no future. There is only the past. Even last night's encounter was just a dream. A wonderful dream. When we were young, we never did it. Do you remember? Now that it has happened, I can't imagine a better ending.
Salvatore 'Toto' Di Vita - Adult: I'll never agree with you. Never.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Hable con ella (2002)

Classic

This 1988 Italian film (released in the US in 1990), is back with a full 51 minutes added on. This seemed like a stupid idea...there was nothing wrong with the original. The directors cut (which was 1/2 hour longer) was considered a mess. Also, for this release, an extra 1/2 hour was added! I expected the worse. Well, I was pleasantly surprised that this 3 hour version is better than the 2 hour one.

This story follows the life of Salvatore. He's born in a tiny Italian village and we see him as a little boy in the 1930s, an adolescent in the 40s-50s and an adult in the 80s. It basically is about his love of movies and the one true love of his life--Elena. They are in love but she comes from a rich family and he lives in poverty. How can they be together?

POSSIBLE MINOR SPOILER IN NEXT PARAGRAPH!!!!

The cut movie in the US excised a lot of the Elena subplot and concentrated on Salvatore's love of movies. There's nothing wrong with that, but Elena disappears quite suddenly. This full version explains what happened between them and fleshes out the characters more. It also reveals a crucial surprise at the end.

The performances are all fantastic--especially by the gorgeous young actor playing Salvatore as a teenager. Elena is also stunning. The film has beautiful cinematography and a haunting music score. The 3 hours flew by for me. I didn't want it to end!

So...beautiful music, attractive stars, good acting, compelling story and some incredible romantic sequences. A must-see!!!!

Bring plenty of Kleenex though--I cried a least 5 times!