Monica Bellucci was among the guests of honor at 14The tenth A copy of the Lumière Film Festival in Lyon, where the Paris-based Italian icon discussed her latest film, The Girl in the Fountain, and looked back at her career.
In “The Girl in the Fountain,” which alternates archival footage of Hollywood icon Anita Ekberg with the Bellucci story, the Italian actress relives Ekberg’s weaknesses and choices, reflecting her sense of being an icon.
The Swedish-born star is immortalized in the film Federico Fellini, which sees her character enter the Trevi Fountain followed by Marcello Mastroianni.
“Through my eyes, you can tell who this actress was, and we say that she is part of Italian history. But La Dolce Vita is not only about post-war Italy – it has an international reach. At that time, there was a lot of creativity, and it was There are so many great filmmakers – Fellini, Rossellini, Visconti, De Sica – they are part of the history of cinema,” she said.
Bellucci likened Ekberg’s arrival in Italy to a “hurricane”—”this sexy, free blonde woman with a convertible and her own home, in a country where a woman’s place is still in the kitchen…. It was a huge cultural contrast, and for some it was frightening.”
Monica Bellucci – Master Class – Pathé
Credit: Chassignole Olivier
“Today’s women learn a lot from these women: They were the first to challenge the laws in force,” she added.
While I initially questioned director Antonio Panesi’s choice – “I’m very Mediterranean, she was very blonde and blue-eyed!” Gradually Bellucci realized it while filming the movie and the similarities between the two emerged.
Like Ekberg, Bellucci also left her homeland. And like Ekberg, she had to contend with the privileged position her beauty bestowed upon her.
“Of course, since you helped me open the doors, it would be a lie to say otherwise, I was shy even though I talk a lot,” she smiled, “so beauty means people come to me.
“But beauty only lasts five minutes if there is nothing behind it. What you should know is that, from the age of forty, they are offering you roles as a witch!” she said mischievously, to the audience’s laughter. “But you shouldn’t cry, you should take on these roles: a brand new group [of roles] Opens. Before that, I was very young and beautiful, and you should welcome this opportunity.”
When she filmed the controversial “Irréversible” with Gaspar Noé in 2001, the former model Bellucci said she had no problem using her body as a “working tool.”
“The actor, like a dancer, uses his body as an instrument, just like a musician with his instruments. I use it a lot less—there is time for everything—but I come from the world of fashion, so I was used to using my body as a medium of expression,” she added with a smile.
While she said she understood that people couldn’t watch this movie because of its violent content, she was concerned with “the contrast between poetry and love and gentleness, and the terrible side of man, who is a wonderful and brutal being at the same time.”
“This movie has that power, as well as the way it was shot – with a 20-minute sequence – it usually only happens in the theatre,” she said, adding that the film is studying at university because that was something new in cinema.
When asked if she would prefer working with younger or more experienced directors, Bellucci said: “You can work with both – you have to watch the movie once it’s complete to understand it. I’m open to everything – what matters is that I feel alive.”
Monica Bellucci’s latest movie, The Girl in the Fountain, is now showing.
The Lumière Film Festival in Lyon runs until October 23.
Credit: Chassignole Olivier
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