CAPOLAVORO!
CAPOLAVORO!
Podcast Description
In this podcast Russell Kilbourn, Professor of Literature and Film at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario discusses classic Italian movies, old and new with Ken Barrett, host of the Brainland podcast, visual artist and former neuropsychaitrist. Each episode focuses on one film. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast delves into a range of topics, primarily focusing on classic and contemporary Italian cinema with episodes discussing themes such as the mafia influence in Gomorrah, Pasolini's unique storytelling in The Gospel According to Matthew, and the exploration of mythological references in La Chimera, while highlighting the historical and social context of each film.
In this podcast Russell Kilbourn, Professor of Literature and Film at Wilfrid Laurier University, Ontario discusses classic Italian movies, old and new with Ken Barrett, host of the Brainland podcast, visual artist and former neuropsychiatrist. Each episode focuses on one film and lasts about 30 minutes.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode we talk about three films by director Paolo Sorrentino, about whose cinema Russ published a book in 2020: his most recent movie ‘La Grazia (2025), about a fictional president of Italy at the end of his term, and two films based on real politicians in the later stage sof their career, ‘Il Divo’ (2008) about Andreotti who was premier on seven occasions i and ‘Loro’ (2018), based on the of Berlusconi’s political career, each featuring Toni Servillo as lead. We talk about the recurrence of older male protagonists in Sorrentino’s films along with scenes involving naked young women (the absence of the latter in ‘La Grazie’ was striking) and how these might be interpretted. Russ points out how the absence of Sorrentino’s usual cinematographer Luca Bigazzi led to the much quieter, more traditional and less startling visual impact of ‘La Grazia’ (‘grace’ in english), with some engaging exceptions. We talk about the way ‘Il Divo’ foregrounds Andreotti’s culpability for a series of bad events in Italy’s recent history in contract to ‘Loro’s’ more elegaic tone more sympathetic portrayal of Berlusconi. Russ also explains the various meaning of the word ‘loro’ in Italian. Other films and series referenced in the episode are listed below.
Participants:
Russ Kilbourn, Professor of English and Film Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario (Canada) http://rjakilbourn.com/
Ken Barrett, UK based visual artist, writer, podcaster and short film producer http://www.kenbarrettstudio.co.uk/
Russ’s book: ‘The Cinema of Paolo Sorrentino: Commitment to Style’ (2020)
The films:
La Grazia (2025): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt34886821/
Il Divo (2008): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1023490/?ref_=fn_i_1
Loro (2018): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt10182822/?ref_=fn_i_1
The Aldo Moro kidnapping on film: Exterior night: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12822708/?ref_=fn_i_1
Nuongiorno notte: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0377569/
Theme music: Tarantella composed by Stephen Brown.
Artwork by KB
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Disclaimer
This podcast’s information is provided for general reference and was obtained from publicly accessible sources. The Podcast Collaborative neither produces nor verifies the content, accuracy, or suitability of this podcast. Views and opinions belong solely to the podcast creators and guests.
For a complete disclaimer, please see our Full Disclaimer on the archive page. The Podcast Collaborative bears no responsibility for the podcast’s themes, language, or overall content. Listener discretion is advised. Read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy for more details.