Here’s a new Italian film that looks like it could be of interest. It’s just come out in Italy this week, and is being shown in 20 cinemas, not a huge amount, but not unusually small for domestic product that isn’t a comedy. A kind of fantastical thriller, it’s directed by Luciano Capponi, who’s done some stuff on TV before but is a new name to me. The plot goes something like this:
Vladimir and his friend Vercingetorix discover, in his dead father’s wine cellar, a wine that has the power to conduct you to the afterlife, opening a doorway that leads in both directions. They begin exploring, but accidentally bring back to life a serial killer. Violent death and secret rituals follow, as both the police and a mysterious occult organisation who are desperate to gain possession of the secret become involved. Along with Lidia, a policewoman, have to try and discover the secret of the fantastical doorway.
At the moment I can’t find any English language reviews, but the Italian critics have called it a bit of a mess, and it sounds like it’s as much a black, surreal comedy as a horror film – a mixture of Sideways, The Da Vinci Code and Artaud. The cast includes Pietro Ragusa, Cosimo Fusco (from Angels and Demons and Rome) and Barbara Bouchet, of all people.
Here’s the trailer: