original title:
Il passato è una terra straniera
directed by:
cast:
cinematography:
editing:
set design:
costume design:
music:
producer:
production:
R&C Produzioni, Fandango, Rai Cinema, supported by Ministero della Cultura
distribution:
world sales:
country:
Italy
year:
2008
film run:
120'
format:
35mm - colour
release date:
31/10/2008
festivals & awards:
Based on a best-selling novel by Gianrico Carofiglio, this is a compulsive thriller about the dangerous relationship that begins between a young law student, Giorgio and an unscrupulous card shark, Francesco. Initially, the pair team up to play poker and make extra money but gradually they move into deeper criminality, rigging all their games and, as the money gets bigger, their lifestyle becomes more outlandish and the opportunity for bigger scams appears. As the prospect of drug dealing opens up, Giorgio becomes more and more estranged from his comfortable middle-class family and Francesco begins to reveal a darker, much more disturbed, violent side to his personality.