The Italian actress
Paola Cortellesi
made her debut as a director with
There Will Always Be Tomorrow
, this film that is a sensitive portrait that shows, with resources from comedy, drama and even the musical,
the fight against patriarchy in impoverished post-war Italy
. In Italy she surpassed the Barbie and Oppenheimer tanks in viewers.
In the opening scene of the film, Delia (Paola Cortellesi, from
Like a Fish Out of Water
and
Men Against Women
) and her husband Ivano Santucci (Valerio Mastandrea, from
Perfect Strangers
), are lying in the marital bed. She greets him with a “Good morning” and his response is a resounding slap that he delivers for no reason. That surprising beginning will set the tone for a film
shot in splendid black and white, and set in 1946
, a time when the Italian peninsula was plunged into poverty after the insane madness of the Second World War.
Delia's family, in addition to her husband, consists of three children, a teenager and two small children, plus a bedridden and cantankerous father-in-law (Giorgio Colangeli, from
The Dinner
, directed by Ettore Scola). Like so many at that time, they survive crammed into tiny basement rooms. The images refer to the neorealist classics that starred
Anna Magnani
or
Sophia Loren
.
Like those, the main character must face everyday reality by dint of courage in a Rome that tries to rise from the ashes. There are long lines in front of businesses to buy some pasta and American soldiers still patrol the streets.
But
Delia has a routine that is close to servitude
in which she must cook with what little she gets, clean, take care of the elderly and get extra money with small actions; from giving injections to mending underwear.
All under the severe gaze and intolerance of her spouse who misses no opportunity to belittle and punish her. Any excuse is good and you have to put up with everything because, as he claims, she suffered the horrors of combat.
The neighborhood knows it
In the neighborhood everyone knows what happens in that home, but
no one dares to get involved
. The patriarchal society was imposed and the women of the house had to remain silent and endure. The only moments of tranquility are with Marisa (Emanuela Fanelli), her friend who sells vegetables in the market, or when she crosses paths with Nino (Vinicio Marchioni, from the series
The Lions of Sicily
, by Paolo Genovese), the mechanic who was her love. youth.
When Marcella (Romana Maggiora Vergano, actress of
Cabrini
, by Alejandro Monteverde), the eldest daughter, falls seduced by Giulio (Francesco Centorame), the young son of the owner of an ice cream parlor who made a fortune who knows how, Delia will have hope for a better future for the girl and memories of her youth will appear in which she dreamed of another life.
Fortunately, Cortellesi, very popular in her country for her career as a comedian and imitator of singers, is
a worthy heir to the best tradition of Italian cinema
and does not stagnate in the history of suffering, sacrifice and gender violence. On the contrary, she adds poetic flight to scenes in which the punishment would be intolerable and
transforms that domestic terror into a kind of choreography
where the blow is suggested as if it were a grotesque dance.
It has a solid cast, even in the smallest roles, which exudes expressive nuances, especially in the looks, to say much more than the lines of an oiled and intelligent script that includes a welcome final twist linked to the democratic history of Italy. which should not be revealed.
In addition, it adds a welcome anachronistic score that fits perfectly with the plot and includes, for example,
Lucio Dalla
with his song
Una sera di miracoli
, moving ballads by
Achille Togliani
and even hip hop songs. In short, this is
cinema with capital letters
, which escapes the usual formulas and sheds light on a tremendous reality:
every 72 hours there is a femicide in Italy
.
File
There will always be tomorrow
Rating
: Very good
Drama. Italy, 2023. 118', SAM13.
Original title
: “C'è ancora domani”.
Direction
: Paola Cortellesi.
With
: Paola Cortellesi, Valerio Mastandrea, Romana Maggiora Vergano, Emanuela Fanelli, Giorgio Colangeli, Vinicio Marchioni, Francesco Centorame and cast.
Theaters
: Cinépolis Recoleta and Houssay, Cinemark Palermo, Showcase Belgrano, Atlas Caballito, Patio Bullrich and Paseo Alcorta, Belgrano Multiplex.