Lovely Boy

Lovely Boy
Directed byFrancesco Lettieri
Screenplay byFrancesco Lettieri
Peppe Fiore
Produced byNicola Giuliano
Francesca Cima
Carlotta Calori
StarringAndrea Carpenzano
CinematographyGianluca Palma
Edited byMauro Rodella
Music byPaco Martinelli
Release date
  • 2021 (2021)
LanguageItalian

Lovely Boy is a 2021 Italian drama film co-written and directed by Francesco Lettieri and starring Andrea Carpenzano. It premiered at the 78th edition of the Venice Film Festival.

Plot

Cast

  • Andrea Carpenzano as Nic / Lovely Boy
  • Daniele Del Plavignano as Daniele
  • Ludovica Martino as Fabiana / Fabi
  • Enrico Borello as Borneo
  • Riccardo De Filippis as Padella
  • Pierluigi Pasino as Lorenzo
  • Martino Perdisa as Martino
  • Federica Rosellini as Cecilia

Production

The screenplay was written during the second month of lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[1] Principal photography started in April 2021.[2] The film was produced by Indigo Film in co-production with Vision Distribution and Sky Italia.[2] It was shot between Rome and Trentino-Alto Adige.[2]

Release

The film premiered at the 79th Venice International Film Festival, as the closing film of the Giornate degli Autori sidebar.[3] It had a limited release in Italian cinemas on 13 September 2021.[4]

Reception

La Stampa critic Gianmaria Tammaro wrote that the film "tells a story of drug addiction without lapsing into qualunquism or clichés; the characters are real, concrete, and multifaceted" and it's "a film that does not need to shout, that knows how to maintain a balance, and that closes without really closing: the final scene is almost a new beginning, not a conclusion; and there is never, even for a second, a judgmental or patronizing tone".[4]

Amber Wilkinson from Eye for Film geve the film three points out of five, noting that "Aside from the slightly unusual music scene setting [...] there's little here to distinguish this from many similar addiction tales. [...] The heart of Lettieri's heart is definitely in the right place, but it doesn't have a particularly strong or unique beat."[5]

For his performance in this film and in Swing Ride, Andrea Carpenzano received a Nastro d'Argento nomination for best actor.[6]

References

  1. ^ Colangeli, Sabrina (13 September 2021). "'Lovely Boy' incontro con regista e cast". Taxidrivers.it (in Italian). Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  2. ^ a b c De Marco, Camillo (14 April 2021). "Filming begins on Francesco Lettieri's Lovely Boy". Cineuropa. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  3. ^ Scarpa, Vittoria (13 September 2021). "Review: Lovely Boy". Cineuropa. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  4. ^ a b Tammaro, Gianmaria (13 September 2021). ""Lovely Boy", dalla trap alla droga, ma con ritorno". La Stampa (in Italian). Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  5. ^ Wilkinson, Amber (5 October 2021). "Lovely Boy (2021) Movie Review". Eye for Film. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Nastri d'Argento Cinema: le nomination 2022 - Cinema". Rai Cultura (in Italian). 20 June 2022. Retrieved 24 October 2024.