Wondrous Boccaccio (2015)

A group of ten young friends hide out from a deadly disease in the countryside during the 1300's.

Directors:

Paolo Taviani, Vittorio Taviani

Writers:

Giovanni Boccaccio (stories), Paolo Taviani (screenplay)

Stars:

Lello Arena, Paola Cortellesi, Carolina Crescentini

1 win & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lello Arena	...	Duca Tancredi
Paola Cortellesi	...	Badessa Usimbalda
Carolina Crescentini	...	Isabetta
Flavio Parenti	...	Nicoluccio Cacciamanico
Vittoria Puccini	...	Catalina
Michele Riondino	...	Guiscardo
Kim Rossi Stuart	...	Calandrino
Riccardo Scamarcio	...	Gentile Carisendi
Kasia Smutniak	...	Ghismunda
Jasmine Trinca	...	Giovanna
Josafat Vagni	...	Federico degli Alberighi
Eugenia Costantini	...	Neifile
Miriam Dalmazio	...	Fiammetta
Fabrizio Falco	...	Dioneo
Melissa Anna Bartolini	...	Elissa (as Melissa Bartolini)

Storyline

Florence, Thirteenth Century. The "Black Death" is spreading. Ten kids (three boys and seven girls) decide to escape and to seek shelter in the countryside, away from the horrible consequences of the plague. In order to kill time, each kid tells a particular story, but no matter how different their stories may be, they all have one aspect in common: love. A love that will help the characters cope with the numerous uncertainties of a very arduous age.

---

Plot Keywords:

middle ages | episodic structure | forbidden love | love | death | 

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama | History

---

User Reviews

Love and death during a pandemic

Seven girls and three boys escape from Florence during the plague to a villa in the countryside and each day entertain each other telling stories.

Even if you are not familiar with the Decameron, you could enjoy the movie for the beautiful locations. In fact, that's what I liked better, the stories taking place in - so to speak - the original locations.

The film starts in a Florence miraculously turned back to the 14th century and even if the main characters run away from the plague very quickly, the feeling of hopelessness and desperation is quite realistic.

We get to see five stories, mostly sad and tragic and a couple providing comic relief. My favourite was the first, with the beautiful bride coming back from Heaven (metaphorically speaking). Acting varies wildly, with some performances being relatively good and others barely passable. The youngsters telling stories are quite stiff and awkward in their delivery of the lines.

The main issue is the lack of smoothness typical of episodic movies, but it still makes for an interesting viewing.

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

26 February 2015 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Maravilhoso Boccaccio

Filming Locations:

Certaldo, Tuscany, Italy

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$661,593

Company Credits

Production Co:

Stemal Entertainment, Cinemaundici, Barbary Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1