Voltati Eugenio 1980

Voltati Eugenio 1980
1h 50min | Drama | 4 September 1980 (Italy)

Storyline:

The film begins when Eugenio, a 14 year old child, is conduced from his grandparents home outside Rome, to Giancarlo (his father) in the city, by Giancarlo’s friend (called “Moustache”). As Eugenio is bothering Moustache, he threatens Eugenio with leaving him in the middle of the country. He finally does it. When Giancarlo finds out, they return for Eugenio, but he is now lost. Meanwhile we’re told the story of the child and his relation with the family, and why he feels unwanted.

User review:

It was not the first time Luigi Comencini had tackled childhood (and it would not be the last):”Incompreso” was very moving and unforgettable;”Pinocchio” was very different from Disney’s cartoon;later in the eighties he would transfer to the screen,with great talent,De Amicis’s “Cuore”,then redo “Marcellino pan y vino”.Comencini is THE poet of childhood ,whose reputation is much greater in France than in his native Italy.Here all the movies I mention above plus “lo Scopone Scientifico” and his “Casanova” are considered art house cinema .

Eugenio is a normal sensitive child.He’s got a rather rich family but he is a burden for them.The child passes from hand to hand: the parents who both want to start over with another partner,the grandparents who are leaving for Australia ,the others who are chic mean bourgeois … That a friend of the family leaves the boy alone in the country is actually what the family unconsciously wants to do!

While they are searching for the boy,all the flashbacks -Comencini displays less skill than he would do in “Cuore” however;besides his cast is weaker- show how selfish adults can become.In direct contrast to that ,the director introduces a working class family where the boy finds some comfort thanks to his pal,some kind of Italian Gavroche.

That the family should be more interested in the new-born calf than in an unfortunate child who slowly moves away as nobody notices it is not surprising and is still relevant in 2007 .As a teacher,I ‘ve sometimes met this kind of child.They are well fed, wear smart clothes,own tons of toys ,so they should not be miserable.

Director: Luigi Comencini
Writers: Luigi Comencini, Massimo Patrizi
Stars: Saverio Marconi, Dalila Di Lazzaro, Bernard Blier
Countries of origin: Italy, France
Language: Italian
Also known as: Turn Around Eugenio