Malèna (2000)

Amidst the war climate, a teenage boy discovering himself becomes love-stricken by Malèna, a sensual woman living in a small, narrow-minded Italian town.

Director:

Giuseppe Tornatore

Writers:

Giuseppe Tornatore (screenplay), Luciano Vincenzoni (original story)

Stars:

Monica Bellucci, Giuseppe Sulfaro, Luciano Federico

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Monica Bellucci	...	Malèna Scordia
Giuseppe Sulfaro	...	Renato Amoroso
Luciano Federico	...	Renato's Father
Matilde Piana	...	Renato's Mother
Pietro Notarianni	...	Professor Bonsignore
Gaetano Aronica	...	Nino Scordia
Gilberto Idonea	...	Avvocato Centorbi (as Gilberto Idone)
Angelo Pellegrino	...	Segretario politico
Gabriella Di Luzio	...	Mantenuta del Barone
Pippo Provvidenti	...	Dott. Cusimano
Maria Terranova	...	Moglie Dott. Cusimano
Marcello Catalano	...	Lieutenant Cadei
Elisa Morucci	...	Lupetta
Domenico Gennaro	...	Farmacista
Vitalba Andrea	...	Moglie farmacista

Storyline

Malèna is about the peril of a beauty through the eyes of a 12 year old kid named Renato. He experiences three things on the same day, beginning of war, getting a bike and sees the arrival of Malèna in town. Through his eyes, we see the curse of beauty and loneliness of Malena, whose husband is presumed to be dead, and through his soul we see his love for her.

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Plot Keywords:

female removes her clothes | female pubic hair | masturbation | female removes her dress | female nudity | 

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Taglines:

A world at war. A young man coming of age. And the woman who changed his life forever

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality/nudity, language and some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

Italian English Latin Greek, Ancient (to 1453)

Release Date:

2 February 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Malena

Filming Locations:

Messina, Sicily, Italy

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$62,282, 25 December 2000, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$3,429,045, 1 April 2001

Company Credits

Production Co:

Medusa Film,Miramax,Pacific Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min 92 min (heavily cut) 84 min (TV)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although Renato is 12 years old in the film, Giuseppe Sulfaro was 15 years old when the film was in production and he is 3 years older than his on-screen character.

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Goofs

When Malèna is hit by the local women after becoming a whore and her hair is cut, she doesn't have any marks or cuts on her head. But later there are sometimes two spots or cuts on her head.

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Quotes

Renato Amoroso: Signora Malena, a more capable person than me... wrote that the only true love is unrequited love. Now I understand why. It's been so long since you last came out of your house. But the longer we are apart, the stronger my love becomes.

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Crazy Credits

The movie is dedicated to Tornatore's Father

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Alternate Versions

Original Italian version (rated T, suitable for all ages) runs 109 minutes. Miramax cut the film down to a running time of around 92 minutes, in order to obtain an R rating. Gone or shortened were many of Renato's dream sequences with Malena which involve a lot more nudity than in the cut version.

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Connections

Spoofs The Last Days of Pompeii (1935)

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Soundtracks

A mio padre
Written by S Rossi

User Reviews

A film which practically has everything; some funny moments,some touching ones, and also features the Most Beautiful Creature Ever Set Foot On Earth: Monica Bellucci!

The first time I got to watch this utterly beautiful film, I knew nothing of the awesomeness of Giusseppe Tornatore (Cinema Paradiso) or the ethereal beauty of Monica Bellucci.

Well, all the needed knowledge flooded my mind within the two hours I spent watching Malena. It's a coming-of-age film, set in the World War 2 years in a small town of Sicily. The main lead is a young boy named Renato, and through his perfectly understandable obsession of a married woman named Malena (there couldn't be a more perfect cast than Monica Bellucci in this role),we get to see him maturing over a few years time. Most of the team focuses on Malena of course, but it's all through Renato's eyes (he's stalking her all the time), and his affection for her. It's no wonder that all males in the town (even teenagers) mostly view her as a hot piece of meat, but this boy's pure love is what eventually makes the difference in his (and her) life.

The ending credits will leave you with the "life goes on" aftermath and possibly the strongest feeling of melancholy you ever achieved from a movie.

Great cinematography, excellent performances from Monica Bellucci(though she barely speaks throughout the film) and the boy playing Renato, amazing score by the grand Maestro Ennio Morricone (nominated for an Oscar), this film has become my absolute favourite and Monica Bellucci my most recent (and strongest) obsession! A perfect 10, though it might seem over the top to a few of you.