BREAD AND TULIPS (2000) * Directed by Silvio Soldini * 114 minutes * In Italian with English subtitles * doors open at 20:30, film starts at 21:00.

Pane e tulipani (2000) [Bread and Tulips] is first and foremost an act of love towards Venice. The protagonist is a woman, interpreted by Licia Maglietta, who wants to escape a meaningless housewife life. She meets a mysterious man, interpreted by Bruno Ganz, who is exceptionally acting in Italian. Aside from the comedy and the beauty of Venice, also shot in angles you do not expect, this film presents a multi-layered message of social critique of fin-de-siècle Italy. In fact, in the 1990s, Italy was stuck between a glorified past and the desire to live life here and now, without compromises, during a turmoil of transformations.