The book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die has been very useful to find great films I have never seen before, and sometimes even films that I either forgot all about, or missed the opportunity to watch, and this is one of the films I could have seen but didn't. Basically this is pretty much an autobiography as Golden Globe nominated director Nanni Moretti plays himself and tells his own story in three chapters, taken from extracts of his diary. Part one sees him riding a scooter through the streets of a near empty Rome, visiting architectures and monuments, his critiques of Hollywood and Italian films - including the repetitive playing of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, and a chance meeting with Flashdance actress Jennifer Beals. Part two sees Nanni heading for the Aeolian Islands, travelling to Lipari visiting his friend Gerardo (Renato Carpentieri), then moving to the Salinda Islands after tourist problems, then moving again after irritation to Stromboli where he gets hooked into more soap operas, and again moving to Alicudi which has no electricity and lacks water. Part three sees him suffering a disease and insomnia, in real life as well, going through various doctors who give him different opinions and diagnoses, and finally X-rays show he has a lung problem with a treatable tumour, and it concludes with him finding a medical encyclopedia and having a sarcastic toast. Also starring Giovanna Bozzolo as Actor in Italian Film, Sebastiano Nardone as Actor in Italian Film, Antonio Petrocelli as Actor in Italian Film, Giulio Base as Car Driver, Italo Spinelli as On the Wall at Spinaceto, Alexandre Rockwell, Carlo Mazzacurati as Film Critic, Raffaella Lebboroni as First Salina Couple, Marco Paolini as First Salina Couple, Claudia Della Seta as Second Salina Couple, Lorenzo Alessandri as Second Salina Couple, Valerio Magrelli as Dermatologist, Roberto Nobile as Dermatologist, Sergio Lambiase as Dermatologist and Antonio Neiwiller as The Mayor of Stromboli. Being based on the director's own experiences this is the most conventional of films, and that is why for most of the way it is interesting, most of the good stuff comes from the sights of the landscapes and cities on the journey, and the real life illness part gives it some poignancy, so overall while I didn't understand all of it, it is a watchable biographical comedy drama. It won the Golden Globe for Best Film, and it was nominated for Best Original Score for Nicola Piovani. Very good!
Review of Dear Diary
