The prolific Italian film and theater director Mario Marton, a fan of Venice, is back in competition in Cannes 27 years after Elena Ferrante’s adaptation of “L’amore molesto” (“Troubling Love”) was released in competition from Croisette in 1995. There is a close relationship between these two films that delve deep into the bowels of Naples’ native Marton.
In his well-acclaimed book, Nostalgia, which was praised by diverse As the “most rewarding movie in years” for Marton Ace actor PierFrancesco Favino plays middle-aged Felice Lasco, who returns to the bustling seaside town after living in Egypt for 40 years. Once back, he finds himself stuck in memories of the distant life he spent in his hometown, while his criminal youth slowly catches up with him.
Talk to Marton diverse On why he adapted the novel by Neapolitan author Ermanno Ria with the same title and elements that make it “more universal than just a Neapolitan tale”. excerpt
What drew you to Felice Lascaux’s return trip to Naples, after living in Cairo for decades?
Lascaux appealed to me because he is completely out of the box in terms of what you see in Italian cinema. He is not a hero. He is someone who feels the need to find himself by going back to his roots, and at any cost. And all this takes place against the backdrop of a global south that goes beyond Naples because it arrives there from the Middle East. This provided me with a completely non-geographical setting. It is Naples, of course, and in particular it is the city’s Sanita district. But there is something broader this character holds.
Vibrant Sanita, in the heart of the city, known for poverty and crime but also for its splendid churches and Baroque buildings, is clearly a strong element of the narrative.
Well, I understood that I could shoot the whole movie without getting away from Sanità. That’s not a quarter of what I knew so well. It is an enclave that not even Neapolitan knows well, far from the sea and very dangerous, abandoned for many years.
But I was drawn to the idea that I could make a whole movie in this quarter that became kind of like a checkerboard or a maze – I like these two comparisons because they are so effective at explaining what I want to do with the camera – that it can move like a checkerboard. This appealed to me. Phyllis is gradually getting deeper into Sanita, but he seems to have a maze inside. And the idea of moving the camera in a labyrinthine fashion in this quarter that reflects the labyrinth of his soul, I thought this could make it something more universal than just a Neapolitan tale.
Of course what attracts Lascaux to Naples, at least at first, is his mother.
Yes, the movie is about a clash between two ex-boyfriends. But a mother is like a movie within a movie. This coming back to his mother he totally abandoned for 40 years, Part One is about rekindling that relationship. With this everything behind his decision to leave Napoli is resurfacing.
He spoke to me about the character of the priest, performed by Francesco de Leyva with whom you work often.
I chose Francesco de Leyva, with whom I worked in “Rione Mayor Sanita”, because Francesco is not only a wonderful actor, he is also active in social work like Father Loufredo. So this part was more like making a documentary. I was also afraid of falling into the trap of speech with this character, and I hope Francesco’s humor and sarcasm will help me avoid that.
He spoke to me about choosing Pierfrancesco Favino, who returned to Cannes after impressing him here to play the lead role in Marco Bellocchio’s The Traitor.
Pierfrancesco has the right scope for this role due to his immense talent and ability to imitate languages [he had to learn both Neapolitan dialect and Arabic]. But it would be an understatement to say that he was very right about the part resulting from this aspect. He was right the part because he’s an actor who can stand up to this character. The role of Phyllis is quite a challenge because although the story has something to do with crime in Naples – and he must be brave to stand up to it – all this is done by a man who is not looking for a struggle. But he is only looking for his place within his soul.
Let’s talk about Naples. To me, this is your movie that’s a lot like Amore Molisto because they go deep into the bowels of this city, although of course Naples was part of other movies I made.
Let me tell you this. “Nostalgia” begins with the arrival of the protagonist in Via Foria [one of Naples’ main thoroughfares] The Steve Lacy track plays. And so begins the movie “Amore Molesto” as well. So there is a direct reference. It serves as a signal to the masses who follow my work to say: “We are in the same place.” In the first movie we were following a woman named Adele and her relationship to the past, memory and guilt. And now we’re following this guy. It’s like going down the road, chasing someone and following them. So there is a very strong connection between these two films. They talk to each other at a distance of 27 years.
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