Open Roads New Italian Cinema starts this week

The  between film Open Roads slide from last year's festival

Ciao

I’m in Italy- no actually I’m at the Film Society of Lincoln Center for their Open Roads New Italian Cinema series. You should be here too.

Actually you need to be here starting Thursday when the films start, until then you should be going over the schedule and picking things out. Trust me on this this year’s films kick ass-then again every years films kick ass.

To be perfectly honest Open Roads series is the best place to see Italian films every year. For me every year the best films from Italy almost without exception come from this series. Its as if the curators watch every film from Italy and manage to grab all the best ones and put them in this collection. This year’s bunch are no exception leaving every every other festival with the second best films.

If you need to some pointers for this year’s festival might I suggest THE FIFTH WHEEL? It's one of my favorite films of the year. It’s a wonderful comedy about the arc of one man’s life over 40 years. The title comes from his father’s comment that he’s as useful as a fifth wheel, however his father can’t see what a great guy he is. Its charming and funny and wonderful and I’ve seen it twice, and I love it.

I also recommend SOUTH IS NOTHING about a young woman coming of age in the shadow of her dead brother; or perhaps the opening night film THOSE HAPPY YEARS about the directors life when he was a growing up and the world's changes began to rattle his parents lives.

If you need more pointers just keep reading since I have reviews running for the next seven days- and while I liked some more than others, all are wonderful and only suffer in comparison to the other films in the series.

Not to put too fine a point on it Open Roads is an embarrassment of riches. Go indulge yourself.

For tickets and additional information go the website which can be found here.