Italian cinema paints an ugly picture of Italy

Alberto Mattioli comments on the Cannes Festival nominations, announced April 23rd. Two Italian films were among them, contrary to the situation in 2007, when none made the cut. "Italian cinema has been resuscitated and heads off to Cannes. Two films are in the competition, Paolo Sorrentino's 'Il Divo' and Matteo Garrone's 'Gomorra' ... . Good. Very good, even. Cinephiles can rejoice. The rest of Italy, less so, if we take a look at the films' subject matter. 'Il Divo' is a biopic of Giulio Andreotti [a controversial politician, today a senator for life suspected of ties with the Mafia], while 'Gomorra' is an adaptation of a devastating best-seller by Roberto Saviano on the Camorra... . This doesn't paint a very nice picture of Italy. It gives the strong impression that the only Italy we see from abroad is governed by a class which is more Mafioso than serious about management."

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