Sunday, April 26, 2015

Rewined (Vinodentro) Movie Review

Vincenzo Amato (c) stars in Rewined (Vinodentro)

The High Cost of Wine 

IMDb Plot: It all started with the first sip of wine Giovanni Cuttin (Vincenzo Amato) had in his life. A Marzemino, a wine mentioned by Lorenzo da Ponte in his libretto for Mozart's Don Giovanni. Since then, the shy clerk becomes the bank director, a lady-killer and the most revered wine expert in Italy. But soon he will be charged for his wife's murder. Being grilled by Inspector Sanfelice (Pietro Sermonti) Giovanni reflects on the last three years of his life, dominated by an only mad passion: wine. Gradually the investigation becomes more and more caught between the boundaries of reality and its dreamlike counterpart. What if Giovanni, like Faust, met a diabolic force that made his life very special, only to settle the score later?


Sanfelice remarks, "Murder is never a laughing matter," and despite a few good moments, Rewined (Vinodentro) is conspicuously light on comedy... a relatively significant omission in a "metaphysical black comedy." It's still plenty entertaining, but also difficult/frustrating to follow at times. Amato is fun to watch, especially when paired with Giovanna Mezzogiorno (wife Adele) as is Cuttin's love lust for wine (the film's best scenes.) I get the deal with the Devil; but why is he (Lambert Wilson) traveling with three Gospel writers? Audiences like to be challenged, not confused. Too many characters/distractions: Perhaps less is more.

GradeC+