Made in Italy – A home to find oneself, the review of the film with Liam Neeson

Jack Foster is about to divorce his wife Ruth. Her family decided to sell the art gallery where he works as a manager, news that deeply shocks him. Jack is not doing well from an economic point of view and thus thinks of obtaining the money necessary to buy back the gallery with the money obtained from the sale of an old Italian house, which he half-owns together with his father Robert, a famous artist with whom relations have been tense for some time. The house belonged to Jack’s mother, of Italian origins, disappeared in an accident car when he was just a child.

As we tell you in review of Made in Italy – A home to meetthe two men leave together for the Bel Paese but upon their arrival they find the villa, immersed in the Tuscan countryside, in a state of complete abandonment. In these conditions it is impossible to sell it and so Jack and Robert have to get back to work and renovate it on their own, finding a unexpected help from the community. In the meantime Jack also has the opportunity to meet the beautiful Natalia, owner of a restaurant with whom the fateful spark will fly…

Italy yes Italy no

Compared to other English-language productions set in our country, here the number of stereotypes present is smaller and that caricatural tone often adopted in representing us is more subtle than usual. A point in favor which in any case cannot completely erase thatintrusive feeling of dejavu which soon takes over in this story of family reunion under the sun of Italy. The lack of communication between father and son is linked to that tragic event that is progressively unfolded during the viewing, the sum of that dramatic soul that accompanies the lighter and postcard-like side of the operation, managing to guarantee that pinch of variety and personality to characters otherwise at high risk of stereotype.

Liam Neeson and action: an honored career based on beatings

A private matter

Made in Italy – A home to meet can count in particular on the charisma of Liam Neeson, who even though he’s not in his best form here still has that star charm capable of stealing the show even in the seemingly most colorless moments. And in a game where reality and fiction coincide almost completely we find Neeson’s real son in the role of the son, that is Michael Richardson. The two are united by the tragedy of loss in real life too, following the painful death of their wife-mother Natasha Richardson, died in a fatal accident on skis in 2009. And obviously they poured into the relevant interpretations of the sensations experienced on one’s own skin, as an elaboration of mourning in front of the screen, thus being more involved and genuine than expected. We would also like to point out the presence of ours in the cast Valeria Bilellosparkling and fresh at the right point in the standard romantic subplot.

White, red and green

The open-air cinemas – the chosen film is The basilisks (1963) by Lina Wertmuller – the typical trattorias and dishes of spaghetti with sauce, according to the most classic Mediterranean cuisine, the iconic Vespa and the often warm welcome from ordinary people. Many clichés, albeit with less insistence and ease as already underlined above, nevertheless make their appearance during the hour and a half of viewing, from background to a story that offers no real twists, standard epilogue included. The English actor James D’Arcyalso the author of the screenplay, makes his debut behind the camera here, signing a technically decent little task but far too linear, skilfully staged but without any particular twists: Made in Italy – A home to meet thus ends up being a discounted product, which precisely in its being reassuring and capable of intercept that large audience without too many pretensions.