Facing Windows (2003)
"La finestra di fronte" (original title)

Overburdened and stuck in a greying marriage, Giovanna takes to caring for the Jewish Holocaust survivor her husband brings home. As she begins to reflect on her life, she turns to the man who lives across from her ...

Director:

Ferzan Ozpetek

Writers:

Ferzan Ozpetek, Gianni Romoli

Stars:

Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Massimo Girotti, Raoul Bova

21 wins & 16 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Giovanna Mezzogiorno	...	Giovanna
Massimo Girotti	...	Simone / Davide Veroli
Raoul Bova	...	Lorenzo
Filippo Nigro	...	Filippo
Serra Yilmaz	...	Eminè
Maria Grazia Bon	...	Sara
Massimo Poggio	...	Young Davide
Ivan Bacchi	...	Simone
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Chiara Andreis
Veronica Bruni	...	2ª Tintora
Olimpia Carlisi	...	Donna negozio
Ohame-Brancy Chibuzo	...	Alessio (as Ohame Brancy Chibuzo)
Carlo Daniele	...	Marco
Rosaria De Cicco	...	Barista
Luciana De Falco	...	Marilena (as Lucianna De Falco)

Storyline

Giovanna is a bookkeeper in a company which packs chickens. She is married to a man who has a precarious job. First she starts being curious about a young man who lives in the block opposite hers, and then she falls in love with him. The relationship between the two becomes much stronger when she starts to find out more about him from an old man who bursts into their lives. The old man, obsessed with the memories of some things that happened n the long past autumn of 1943, has lost his memory and finds refuge in Giovanna.

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Plot Keywords:

memory | old man | lost | marriage | love | 

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Taglines:

Desire knows no bounds.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures Classics [us] Zootrope Films [fr]

Country:

Italy Turkey Portugal UK

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

18 June 2004 (USA)

Also Known As:

Facing Windows

Filming Locations:

Ponte Sisto, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$36,061 (USA) (18 June 2004)

Gross:

$541,682 (USA) (8 October 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

R&C Produzioni, AFS Film, Clap Filmes

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Massimo Girotti died on 6 January 2003 and the movie is dedicated to his memory. Before he was cast, Ferzan Ozpetek had considered also Jean Rochefort and Serge Reggiani for his role.

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Soundtracks

"Il Confronto vocal"
Written by Andrea Guerra

User Reviews

Graceful and unpretentious

An Italian movie that starts as a pleasant but otherwise unremarkable tale of a nine year old marriage and an old man wandering the streets with no memory and a pocketful of money. We are drawn in by the rather lovable (if all too human and imperfect) characters until, half way through, the film explodes with moments of real beauty, passion and tenderness. The cinematography deftly weaves flashbacks and fleeting glances from within the minds of the main characters, their memories merging seamlessly for a few moments with the real life around them. The script contains gems that you want to remember.

Italian star Giovanna Mezzogiorno is superb as the wife who seems to be locked in a constant struggle with her husband and attracted to the man in the apartment facing theirs. But Facing Window proves to be far more than melodrama triangle: echoes of the Nazi holocaust and the inner strength to realize one's true feelings, as well as one's true calling ... 'it isn't enough to dream about a better life, you must demand it.' For those who like something more substantial to their cinema than popcorn and nachos, Facing Window fits the bill with effortless grace.