The Ideal City

The Ideal City
Film poster
Directed byLuigi Lo Cascio
Screenplay byLuigi Lo Cascio
Virginia Borgi
Massimo Gaudioso
Desideria Rayner
Produced byAngelo Barbagallo
StarringLuigi Lo Cascio
Catrinel Menghia
Luigi Maria Burruano
CinematographyPasquale Mari
Edited byDesideria Rayner
Music byAndrea Rocca
Production
companies
BiBi Film
Rai Cinema
Distributed byCinecittà Luce
Release dates
  • August 11, 2012 (2012-08-11) (Venice)
  • April 11, 2013 (2013-04-11) (Italy)
Running time
105 minutes
CountryItaly
LanguageItalian

The Ideal City (Italian: La città ideale) is a 2012 Italian thriller drama film, written and directed by Luigi Lo Cascio. It is Cascio's directorial debut film.[1][2] The film premiered in International Film Critics' Week section at 69th Venice International Film Festival on August 11, 2012.[3]

The film screened at number of film festivals before having a theatrical release in Italy on April 11, 2013.[4]

Plot

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The film tells the story of the architect and ecologist Michele Grassadonia, who moves from his hometown of Palermo to live in Siena and build a life that is as environmentally friendly as possible.

Cast

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  • Luigi Lo Cascio as Michele Grassadonia
  • Catrinel Menghia as Alexandra
  • Luigi Maria Burruano as Avv. Scalici
  • Aida Burruano as Madre
  • Barbara Enrichi as Giudice
  • Massimo Foschi as Avv. Chiantini
  • Roberto Herlitzka as Custode Maneggio
  • Alfonso Santagata as Pubblico Ministero
  • Manuel Zicarelli as Marco

Reception

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The film received mixed to positive reviews from the critics. Boyd van Hoeij in his review for Variety said that "An ecologically minded Italo engineer finds himself in judicial quicksand after he pulls over his borrowed car to help someone lying in the road, in this intriguing, only lightly absurdist drama."[5] Jennie Kermode of Eye for Film gave the film four out of five stars and called it "An intriguing piece of work and particularly impressive for a début feature, this won't be everybody's ideal film but some viewers will adore it."[6] Mymovies.it said that "The ideal city remains an important debut and mature in the spread of so much ugliness takes the side of beauty."[7]

Accolades

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Year Group/Award Category Recipient Result Ref.
2012 Venice Film Festival Best Italian Film Luigi Lo Cascio Won [8]
2013 Bimbi Belli Festival Best Film Luigi Lo Cascio Nominated [9][10]
David di Donatello Awards Best New Director Luigi Lo Cascio Nominated [11]
Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Best New Director Luigi Lo Cascio Nominated [12]
Roseto First Work Festival Golden Rose Luigi Lo Cascio Won [13]
2014 World Premieres Film Festival Best Environmental Feature Luigi Lo Cascio Nominated [14]

References

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  1. ^ "THE IDEAL CITY". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  2. ^ "Interview to Luigi Lo Cascio, director of La città ideale". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  3. ^ "International Critics' Week". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  4. ^ "VIDEO: LUIGI LO CASCIO, THE FIRST TIME AS A DIRECTOR". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  5. ^ "Review: 'The Ideal City'". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  6. ^ "The Ideal City". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  7. ^ "The directorial debut of important and mature Lo Cascio". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  8. ^ "[LA CITTÀ IDEALE]". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  9. ^ "Beautiful children: back Arena Sacher the exhibition of the works first". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  10. ^ "Back Bimbi Belli". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  11. ^ "CANDIDATES OF 2013". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  12. ^ "What To Make Of The Nastro D'Argento Nominations 2013". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  13. ^ "18th EDITION OF "THE ROSE GARDEN DEBUT": THE ROSE GOLD GOES TO "THE CITY 'IDEAL' DI LUIGI LO CASCIO". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
  14. ^ "Italy - La citta Ideale / The Ideal City". Retrieved November 25, 2014.
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