An ambitious project, originated from producer Cristiano Bortone's Bridging the Dragon association, has adapted Alberto Simone's novel “Un Amore a Roma” into “The Italian Recipe”, a film co-produced by Italy and China, and developed for the Chinese market. Very aptly, the movie will open with its World Premiere Screening, the 24th edition of the Udine Far East Film Festival, following by its release in thousands of Chinese cinemas.
“The Italian Recipe” is screening at Udine Far East Film Festival
Two very different young Chinese citizens are struggling to understand their life path in two very far apart corners of the world. Peng (Liu Xun), in Beijing, is an emerging popstar, completely englobed in the stardom system machine, guided by his agent Pete (Wu Yingzhe) and dependent on social media analytics. He is good but not good enough to surpass some of his peers that seem to have a more magic touch with the audience. About 8,000 km away, in Rome, Mandy (Yao Huang) is a busy body. She is supported by her loving aunt and uncle who run a laundry shop in the center of Rome and hope in a bright future for Mandy as a lawyer. Mandy, on her side, fosters a secret dream to be a chef and work with her idol, celebrity chef Antonino Cannavacciuolo (a nice touch as Cannavacciuolo is a real-life beloved Italian chef and admired Masterclass judge). She dutifully studies law alongside taking over lots of odd jobs to make ends meet, like tourist guide or driver when needed, but she also secretly works few shifts in a restaurant to get some kitchen experience and maybe one day apply for a job with her hero-chef.
Back in Beijing, agent Pete feels that Peng needs a boost to propel his popularity into stardom and an occasion arises when he is asked to participate to a reality show set in Rome, where he will pretend to have a romance with a well-known celebrity/influencer. The show will surely skyrocket the “likes” and Peng image! Coincidentally, the car that pick them up at the Rome Airport is driven by Mandy who is covering up for her dear friend Antonio (Romano Reggiani). Eavesdropping their conversation, she soon realizes what a spoiled superficial brat Peng is. But destiny plays with them and conjures up a second encounter between the two, when Peng, fed up with the glitzy crowd of a production party, ventures out in the alleys of Rome and collapses, drunk and rain-soaked, just outside Mandy's home. The girl rescues him, and for a series of plot twists and turns, they spend a whole magic night out and about in the streets of the Eternal City, in the whirlwind of the celebrations for a football victory against Germany. They will have a chance to talk a lot and maybe change their preconceived ideas about each other, but also to re-assess their own priorities.
In this charming rom-com there is a lot to like, other than its mismatched (but not really!) protagonists. Despite the universal appeal and fame of a city like Rome, it's not common to see a Chinese film almost completely set there (ok, yes, Bruce Lee … inside the Colosseum!). In reality, the Chinese communities of Rome and Milan are among the biggest in Europe and they offer a rich pool of children of the diaspora, a generation searching for their own identity and life opportunities. On another side, what's better than Rome as a facilitator of romantic adventures? A lovingly homage to the classic “Roman Holiday”, “The Italian Recipe” proposes once again a young odd couple on a Vespa whizzing around the remains of the city's millenary history, a scene that will please immensely the foreign audience and that – I can assure you, as I am Roman – it is as authentic as the Colosseum. In fact, the Italian side of this co-production, set designers and costume designers, have done a great job keeping everything rather real, and using the few product-placements and inevitable stereotypes to work in their advantage. Rome is beautifully shot by DOP Vladan Radovic, and it was surprisingly good to see the couple venture into less common location, like the Monumental Cemetery and Santa Cecilia Conservatory in an affectionate homage to Maestro Ennio Morricone, whose “Cinema Paradiso”'s score is mentioned and hummed by Peng.
The minor character actors, like the grumpy taxi driver, the flirty traffic guard and the football-distracted police officers give a touch of real-life comedy as they are inspired by everyday characters of the chaotic and lenient life in Rome. Renown composer Santi Pulvirenti is responsible for the captivating score while directress Hou is the author of the final song, performed by Peng.
Like a bona fide Chinese movie, “The Italian Recipe” conveys a positive moral message. In this case, rather refreshingly, it goes against the trap of the fake lives and fake happiness on social media, and the dependency on external validation. It is only by abandoning that easy and alluring path that Peng will find his musical mojo back. One good lesson the two protagonists learn in the unfolding of their capers is that something good can be built together only if – and when – each of them find some sort of inner peace, a sense of purpose and stability. One of the best things of the story is in fact the lack of an easy happy ending but a sense of having to work hard towards that very happy ending.
If “The Italian Recipe” is a recipe for love, it also has all the ingredients to cook up a perfect commercial success. Passion for food, cinema references, evocative music and a glorious background will surely break both Chinese hearts and box-offices.
