Cinema Paradiso (1988)

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.

Director:

Giuseppe Tornatore

Writers:

Giuseppe Tornatore (story), Giuseppe Tornatore (screenplay)

Stars:

Philippe Noiret, Enzo Cannavale, Antonella Attili

Top Rated Movies #56 | Won 1 Oscar. Another 21 wins & 23 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Antonella Attili	...	Maria Di Vita - Younger
Enzo Cannavale	...	Spaccafico
Isa Danieli	...	Anna
Leo Gullotta	...	Usher
Marco Leonardi	...	Salvatore 'Totò' Di Vita - Teenager
Pupella Maggio	...	Maria Di Vita - Older
Agnese Nano	...	Elena Mendola
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Father Adelfio
Salvatore Cascio	...	Salvatore 'Totò' Di Vita - Child
Tano Cimarosa	...	Blacksmith
Nicola Di Pinto	...	Village Idiot
Roberta Lena	...	Lia
Nino Terzo	...	Peppino's Father
Jacques Perrin	...	Salvatore 'Totò' Di Vita - Adult
Brigitte Fossey	...	Elena Mendola - Adult

Storyline

A famous film director remembers his childhood at the Cinema Paradiso where Alfredo, the projectionist, first brought about his love of films. He returns home to his Sicilian village for the first time after almost 30 years and is reminded of his first love, Elena, who disappeared from his life before he left for Rome.

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Plot Keywords:

film projectionist | cinema | flashback | haunted by the past | mother son relationship | 

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Taglines:

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

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Asmik Ace [Japan] Official Facebook

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

23 February 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cinema Paradiso

Filming Locations:

Bagheria, Palermo, Sicily, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$25,899 (USA) (14 June 2002)

Gross:

$11,990,401 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cristaldifilm, Les Films Ariane, Rai 3

Technical Specs

Runtime:

155 min 173 min (Europa Cinema Festival) 124 min (cut theatrical)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Giuseppe Tornatore photographed over 300 young Sicilian boys in his attempt to find an actor to play young Salvatore before he eventually cast Salvatore Cascio in the role.

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Goofs

The 1954 calendar is wrong. All the days are out by one. The calendar shows that 1st April, 1954 is a Friday. In fact it was a Thursday.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Maria Di Vita - Older: [in Italian]
[on the phone]
Maria Di Vita - Older: Yes, Salvatore di Vita. You mean you don't know him, Miss? That's right, and I'm his mother. I've been calling from Sicily, all day long. I understand, he's not there.

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Connections

Referenced in O Último Cine Drive-in (2015)

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Soundtracks

Love Theme
Written by Ennio Morricone

User Reviews

A breath of fresh air blowing away the cobwebs of Hollywood "blah" films.

I have seen this film at least a dozen times and each time I am carried away to a small village in Italy, where the dreams of a small boy come true and we can join his spellbinding journey. The Italian language (it is subtitled) adds to the film's beauty and music, the characters are so real you can almost smell them. I am absorbed into "Paradiso" each time I watch it, so that when it is over, I am shocked into the realisation that I haven't actually been anywhere except right there, in my theatre seat. I am not a huge "art house" film fan or indeed enjoy subtitled films (it is hard on the old eyes!) but "Paradiso" is a gem and is worth seeing again and again.