original title:
Ho visto le stelle
directed by:
cast:
Claudio Amendola, Maurizio Casagrande, Alena Seredova, Vincenzo Salemme, Valentina Sperlì, Ernesto Lama, Lily Tirinnanzi, Enzo Cannavale, Carola Clavarino, Venantino Venantini, Gian, Marina Graziani, Biancamaria Lelli, Linda Moretti
screenplay:
cinematography:
editing:
set design:
costume design:
music:
producer:
production:
distribution:
country:
Italy
year:
2003
film run:
91'
format:
colour
release date:
19/12/2003
The protagonist of the story is Antonio (Vincenzo Salemme), a forty year old man born in a small town near Naples. An orphan of both parents, he grew up with his grandparents who have cuddled and spoiled him. Especially his grandfather (Gian – Fabio Bosco), a man full of imagination. He has taught his grandson the love for life and the almost pathological inclination to live things with the nice filter of fantasy. “With fantasy one can get everywhere!”, he used to say to his little grandson and the boy has made a treasure of such advice: maybe too much, because now that he is an adult, at least according to record, he can’t get rid of this goliardic and childish inclination in facing his life. For this reason he decides one day to leave for Milan, attracted by a banner found on the internet, a mysterious contest to join the group of competitors who will take part in a sort of international reality show. The contest is a fraud but Antonio doesn’t realise it, despite the doubts of Eugenio (Maurizio Casagrande), his life long friend, who accompanies him in the adventure.
Thus, contrary to the unaware Mr. Truman in the film by the same name, who did not realiste he lived in a false reality, watched by millions of spectators, our Antonio Bavarese from Naples thinks he is spied by thousands of cameras, surrounded by thousands of actors disguised as real persons, he imagine microphones and microchips hidden everywhere. And thus, amused, he play his role, or better, the role the stingers assigned him: they told him they needed a real gay and he, for the lust of being cast, has now ended up playing that role an a garish, excessive way. But he is convinced he is doing okay, because no one is telling him anything, no one complains, on the contrary…! Mr. Renato (Claudio Amendola), a very powerful boss, owner of the club where he found a job as water, entrusts him the extremely beautiful Russian girl Alina (Alena Seredova), whom he is in love with and of whom he is desperately jealous. Antonio is evermore convinced of being in the part of the plot of a great soap. He doesn’t realise that Renato, Alina, and all the others, are real person. He just cannot separate reality from fantasy. Until love comes about and then…