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By Panayiotis Panagopoulos
Movies stemming from Italy’s most recent cinematic crops which did not make it to Greek theaters make up the core of the first edition of Tutto Italia, an annual celebration of Italian cinema and culture in Athens. Screenings start on Thursday, April 19 and continue until next Wednesday, April 25, at the Ideal and Elly cinemas in the city center. The films were originally scheduled to be shown at the landmark Attikon and Apollon theaters but these plans had to be scrapped as a result of the extensive damage sustained by both venues following rioting in Athens in February. The artistic director of Tutto Italia is film critic Panayiotis Timogiannakis, who describes the events thus: “This is not about having a festival experience, but more like going on a trip to Rome, with all recent movies collected together.” Besides a program of screenings which includes some 30 films, Tutto Italia further includes a series of parallel events showcasing Italian culinary traditions along with others related to the country’s culture and lifestyle. To find out more about these parallel events, log on to the website listed below. Screenings get under way with “Appartamento ad Atene” (Apartment in Athens). Ruggero Dipaola’s 2011 directorial debut stars Italy’s Laura Morante and Greek actor Gerasimos Skiadaresis. The film centers on a family living in German-occupied Athens in 1942, whose lives are changed profoundly when their apartment is commandeered by a German officer. Other film highlights include Luca Miniero’s 2010 comedy “Benvenuti al Sud” (Welcome to the South), an Italian remake of French blockbuster “Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis.” The film achieved box-office success by getting Italians to laugh at one of their most deeply held convictions: that an unbridgeable divide separates the rich north of the country from the poor south. Meanwhile, in Paolo Genovese’s 2010 comedy “Immaturi” (The Immature), a group of 30-year-olds are informed that they have to resit their high school finals due to an official error. Ideal, 46 Panepistimiou, tel 210.3826.720; Elly, 64 Academias, tel 210.3632.789. Admission to screenings costs 6 euros. For more information go to www.tuttoitalia.gr. | 
