Tea with Mussolini (1999)
In 1930s fascist Italy, adolescent Luca just lost his mother. His father, a callous businessman, sends him to be taken care of by British expatriate Mary Wallace. Mary and her cultured friends - including artist Arabella, young widow Elsa, and archaeologist Georgie - keep a watchful eye over the boy. But the women's cultivated lives take a dramatic turn when Allied forces declare war on Mussolini.
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Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!
It is a performances centric movie
What begins as a feel-good-human-interest story turns into a mystery, then a tragedy, and ultimately an outrage.
While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.
The Italians don't seem to treat their sordid past Fascist connections with much serious examination in film, and this fine film is quite another in the somewhat 'romantic' mould. Here, the interpretation of these shocking times could perhaps be taken as simply reflecting the youthful memories of Mr Zeffirelli. Still, there are several seriously challenging situations in this beautifully produced film and the performances are something to treasure. Where the facts separate from the fiction maybe blurred but the tragic history of these terrible days will forever haunt anyone who recalls the struggle to survive. Lush cinematography and music score make it a sophisticated journey back through modern history.
@noralee (Queens, NY) "What the movie also brought to mind is how few Italian movies have dealt with their fascist past as much as the French have been exploring their consciences of collaboration in film. " Obviosly you have little knowledge about the Italian cinema. When French started to "explaore their consciences" Italians had already made hundreds of movies about theirs. There are many movies about that period such as : Una Giornata Particolare,Il Federale, Il Delitto Matteotti, Giarabub,Empoli 1921, Vincere, Il Leone del Deserto,Gli Anni Ruggenti, The long night of '43, Il Generale Rovere, Via Rasella, A Day as lions, Fontamara, and many others which I can not post here because I know the titles in Italian only. Anyway, here is a list of movies about that period: ttp://www.unifi.it/bibliotecapoloprato/CMpro-v-p-137.html Maybe the problem is that the majority of these movies are unknown internationally.
This film, I feel, is amazing. It combines a violent historical period with comedy, without offending anyone, which is a very admirable trait. The perfectly acted characters were both funny and very believable; very English 1930's or so old woman.The plot was interesting and a well written film overall. The cross-dressing son a humorous side-story to the dominant "imprisonment" of the ladies, and the situation with Else (Cher) and Luca. Still, these different story lines merged seamlessly to provide a varied and fascinating story throughout.Overall, a fantastic film.
Another masterpiece from Franco Zefferelli (also the man behind "Romeo and Juliet"), "Tea with Mussolini" portrays several English and American expatriate women raising an Italian boy in 1930's Florence. Always ready to reject authority, these women know how to live. It's another great tale of civil disobedience at a time when it seemed impossible if not dangerous. Cher, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Joan Plowright, and Lily Tomlin all do great jobs with the roles. It's weird to imagine Cher in such a role; I've always thought that she was kind of worthless. But even she does really well here. A splendid movie for all times. Definitely see it.