Il reste encore demain

I will start by saying that I really love Paola Cortellesi, she is one of the finest Italian actresses of these times, capable of offering the greatest laughs and the most bitter tears, thanks to her versatile acting skills.

This happens throughout this film too. She is Delia, a middle-aged woman who lives with her husband, three children and her nasty father-in-law in terribly harsh conditions. She struggles to make ends meet and to sustain her family, while suffering domestic abuse and dreaming of a past love. When her daughter gets engaged to the son of the local café owner, she senses that her she risks embarking in a life of strain and violence, just like hers.

I loved the performances in this film: Paola Cortellesi, Vittorio Mastandrea (one of my favourite actors), Giorgio Colangeli and Emanuela Fanelli. The use of black and white was clever, as it gives the film a poetic look. I also appreciated the bittersweet scenes: tragedy mixed with comedy.

Nevertheless I wouldn't call this a masterpiece as I thought the storyline was a bit forced, especially with the final surprising end, which seems a bit too detached from the rest of the film...

A saga of domestic abuse and deeply rooted misogyny and somewhat a celebration of female empowerment. Did not expect the ending, I was hoping for something grander for Delia's disobedience, but this goes to show how significant it was at the time.

There is also some humour here and there, but I have to say putting a musical number over a scene of spousal abuse kind of has the opposite effect. It makes light of something awful and I cringed watching it. Or maybe that was also by design, who knows. It's certainly uncomfortable.

The opening scene sure sets the tone and it only gets worse from there. Up to hearing don Ottorino advise his son on how to effectively discipline his wife. Initially I thought he was advocating for her, but no. And then Giulio showing his true colours and Marcella refusing to see it and you can feel Delia's whole being shuddering.

I did not feel like watching an old (style) movie, and this is I imagine the reason why they chose back and white, but the actors' performances make it come to light.

This movie is perfect in so many ways and I hope it will win everything it can win, from the bottom of my heart. I haven't seen such a beautiful Italian movie in so long. And to think it's Paola Cortellesi's first movie as a director and co-writer makes it even more special.

It is amazingly written, directed and acted. It's brave, powerful, original and you NEED to watch it. It tells a dramatic story with bittersweet tones, keeping it extremely real and revolutionary.

I am Italian so I could obviously understand all the homages and nuances, however I am sure an international audience will appreciate this little gem in a whole.

Go watch it and you won't regret that.

By and large, this film is a truly remarkable achievement. It is a grounded portrait of postwar Italian life, and an unflinching look at the widespread acceptance of blatant misogyny at the time - one which is all-too-easily forgotten today, as many would like to believe a variation of "the West has always been enlightened".

Delia's travails and suffering are often stomach-churning, yet they form a strong, gradual character arc - its culmination adding a human dimension to the real-world political drama which otherwise stays in the background of the story. The script is generally very good at developing its supporting characters as well - from Delia's three children, to her horrifically abusive yet all-too-believable husband Ivano and his bedridden father - down to her neighbours and the family of her daughter's wealthy suitor. Paola Cortellesi has a real gift for taking kitchen-table scenes and making them captivating.

There is only one flaw I would have to point out with the script - and it's the subplot with the Black American soldier at a nearby checkpoint. While it certainly comes from the right place, the way it's handled is surprisingly clumsy and contrived throughout - from the implausibly easy and lucky introduction, to her sudden loss of caution in a way you would have expected her to foresee, and down to the resolution which seems to suddenly overlook the language barrier that defined their interactions up until then. It speaks A LOT to the quality of this film that I still easily consider it one of the year's best in spite of the above.

"C'è ancora domani" is a very pretty film set in a post-WW2 Rome that centers around Delia and her family composed by two young children, a daughter who is about to engage, a violent husband and his father. Thematically the core of the movie is the treatment reserved to women in that era, which is still a significant discussion nowadays because though better than in the 40s' the issue is not solved at all. What I particularly liked about this discussion is the tone because it's not too dark allowing everyone to appreciate the movie and receive the message, but at the same time it's not too light thus avoiding to lose its impact. An example of this which I think was very effective is the treatment of the domestic violence scene that is depressing but there's a gimmick that lightens it while creating a bittersweet contrast. Furthermore the movie has more jokes than what I expected and it relies on a versatile cast able to be dramatic and comedic at the same time. However, even if properly done in most of the instances, few laughs were audible through the theatre because they are more tension reliefs than actual wanted funny moments. And also the final twist is pretty good. The movie did an excellent job in creating a narration that leads to something to then shift towards something else in an elegant way. There are few things that could have been better, in particular the final part of the engagement storyline which I think went outside of the overall tone, but in general they don't compromise too much the final result.

In conclusion I think that "C'è ancora domani" is a film everyone should watch for two reasons. The first one is related to the messages conveyed, while the second one is also pretty relevant: it's a good movie that will entertain all audiences for almost two hours. And this is not a small thing at all.