World Cinema Locations: A Profile of Italy

This month, our film club is screening a film from Italy. Here’s a detailed look at the country behind the movie.

Key Facts

Capital: Rome
Area: 301,340 km²
Population: ~59 million
Official Languages: Italian
Currency: Euro (EUR)

Top 10 Tourist Attractions

• Colosseum: The largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, standing in the heart of Rome as a symbol of the Roman Empire’s engineering and spectacle.
• Vatican City & St. Peter’s Basilica: The world’s smallest sovereign state, home to St. Peter’s Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, and Michelangelo’s frescoes.
• Trevi Fountain: An 18th-century Baroque fountain in Rome, famous for the tradition of tossing a coin over one’s shoulder to ensure a return visit.
• Pompeii: The remarkably preserved ruins of an ancient Roman city buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.
• Venice & St. Mark’s Square: A unique city built on a lagoon, celebrated for its canals, gondolas, and Byzantine-influenced architecture.
• Leaning Tower of Pisa: A freestanding medieval bell tower in Pisa, world-renowned for its distinctive unintended tilt.
• Amalfi Coast: A dramatic stretch of Mediterranean coastline south of Naples, dotted with pastel-colored cliffside towns like Positano and Ravello.
• Florence’s Duomo & Uffizi Gallery: The cradle of the Renaissance, home to Brunelleschi’s iconic cathedral dome and one of the world’s great art collections.
• Cinque Terre: Five colorful fishing villages perched along the rugged Ligurian coastline, linked by scenic coastal trails.
• Lake Como: An elegant alpine lake in Lombardy, long favored by aristocrats and celebrities for its grand villas and dramatic mountain scenery.

Timeline of History

• 753 BC: The traditional founding date of the city of Rome.
• 27 BC: Augustus becomes the first Roman Emperor, beginning centuries of imperial rule across the Mediterranean.
• 476 AD: The fall of the Western Roman Empire marks the beginning of the Middle Ages in Italy.
• 14th-16th centuries: The Italian Renaissance flourishes in city-states like Florence, Venice, and Rome, transforming Western art and thought.
• 1861: The Kingdom of Italy is proclaimed, unifying the peninsula’s separate states under Victor Emmanuel II.
• 1922: Benito Mussolini’s March on Rome brings the National Fascist Party to power.
• 1946: A national referendum abolishes the monarchy, and Italy becomes a republic.
• 1957: Italy signs the Treaty of Rome, becoming a founding member of the European Economic Community.

Culture

Italian culture has shaped Western art, architecture, food, and fashion for centuries, from the classical monuments of Rome to the masterpieces of the Renaissance. Regional identity remains strong, with distinct culinary traditions, dialects, and festivals varying widely between the north and south.

Food is central to daily life, with regional specialties in pasta, cheese, and wine celebrated through countless local sagre, or food festivals. Milan stands as a global capital of fashion and design, while events like Venice’s Carnevale and Siena’s Palio horse race showcase centuries-old traditions that continue to draw visitors from around the world.

Politics

Italy is a parliamentary republic in which executive power is divided between a largely ceremonial President and a Prime Minister who leads the government. The President, currently Sergio Mattarella, is elected by Parliament for a seven-year term and serves as head of state, guaranteeing the constitution and stepping in during political crises.

The Prime Minister, currently Giorgia Meloni, is head of government and must maintain the confidence of Parliament, which is composed of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. Italian governments have historically been short-lived compared to other European democracies, though periods of relative stability, including the current administration, have also occurred.

Film Connection

Italy was a co-producer of ‘La Cage aux Folles‘, and Italian star Ugo Tognazzi’s casting as Renato brought the film both box-office draw and a comic sensibility rooted in the country’s commedia all’italiana tradition.

While the film’s story unfolds in the French Riviera town of Saint-Tropez, many of its interior scenes, including those inside the fictional nightclub, were filmed at Dear Film and Cinecitta Studios in Rome, giving the production an Italian creative backbone behind its French setting. The film’s score was composed by Italian maestro Ennio Morricone, whose work brought a distinctly Italian musical sensibility to this French-set farce.

😜Fun Fact: Italy is home to more UNESCO World Heritage Sites than any other country in the world.