Diciannove (2024) Movie Script
1
[birds chirping]
[footsteps]
[inhales then exhales]
[woman] Why are you sleeping
in your sister's room and not yours?
The bathroom's closer.
Where'd you get this?
I found it.
You were so cute.
Is that any way to fold shirts?
You're a moron.
You button it all the way up.
Not like that. Let me do it.
Look.
It wasn't that difficult.
Mm-hm.
[traffic humming]
Leonardo, check your suitcase.
You didn't load it right.
- What's wrong with it?
- It's wobbling. If I brake hard,
it'll fall on you,
and you'll be killed outright.
Have you got everything?
- Everything?
- Yes.
- Ticket? ID?
- Got it.
- Mobile phone?
- Got it.
- Phone charger?
- Got it.
- Computer?
- Yes.
- Computer plug?
- Wait.
- I think I've forgotten my ID card.
- What?
- [brakes squeal]
- [horn honks]
- Really?
- Just joking.
You really are a blockhead.
Do you know that?
- It's dangerous to joke in a car.
- Sorry.
Fuck you! From the depths of my soul!
You don't joke around in a car.
You die in a car!
Sorry, sorry.
What are your plans when
you get to London? What will you do?
I land at Heathrow...
No, sorry, at Gatwick.
- Oh, Blessed Mother!
- Gatwick.
I woke up last night with a nosebleed.
You have weak capillaries, like me.
I suffered from nosebleeds
when I was a kid.
I couldn't stop it,
I nearly bled to death.
- Oh, that bad?
- Yeah.
Perhaps I should get it checked out.
You don't need to get it checked out,
it's nothing serious.
[pensive music playing]
[beeping]
LONDON
Uh, I'm outside.
Okay, I'll be right there.
My little brother!
- How are you?
- Fine, you?
- Fine. How was your flight?
- Fine.
Go through.
I can't believe you're here, I swear.
Happy to become a Londoner, sweetie?
Sure. Yeah.
That last day, I said to my class,
"I never want to see you again!"
And now I'm here in London with Leonardo.
You made friends with my sister.
- [cell phone chimes]
- It's not my fault.
Leonardo, it's always your fault.
The bastard received the plant.
Really? What did he say?
He sent me the photo, the fucker.
What's up?
- I'm embarrassed to tell Leonardo.
- Go on, tell him!
The thing is, I screwed this guy
who didn't tell me he had thrush.
So I sent a cactus to his office
with a note, "Thanks for thrush."
Black paper in a black envelope.
- Sorry, but what's thrush?
- Leonardo, are you for real?
Love, it's a venereal disease.
- And what happens?
- I'll let you Google that.
Don't worry, we'll have
a great time at Maddox tonight.
Yeah, then I'll find another.
I forgot to tell you,
we're eating here first,
then we're going to Maddox.
- Which one is Maddox?
- The one we went to last year
in the Piccadilly area.
We went together once.
- What kind of music do they play?
- Hip-hop stuff.
The place they let you in for free because
you're nice and you have pussies?
- That's right.
- Okay then.
Shall we cook some pasta?
Will you lend me
your snakeskin boots, doll?
- Of course, babe.
- Thanks.
[classical music playing]
Let's grab some booze.
Ceydou's waiting at the tube station.
- Who's Ceydou?
- My Turkish friend.
A hot babe.
- Will this do?
- Yes.
Come on. Let's go.
Man up.
[clerk] No, no, no.
- Have you got your Oyster card?
- Yes.
- [Arianna] Will you hurry up?
- I can't find it.
- Your eyes look a bit yellow.
- I can't open them in the morning.
- That's so funny!
- You're laughing at my suffering.
Shut up, Leonardo, and tickle my arm.
You're always on bullshitting.
- [Arianna in English] Hey.
- [woman] Hey!
[Arianna] Sorry we're late.
- He's my brother.
- Hi. I'm Jada.
[in English] I'm Leonardo.
Oh, my God. You guys look so alike.
Look at the eyes. The shape.
- You're already drunk, right?
- No.
No, I swear. Help me, Grazia.
They're certainly different, Jada.
She's an angel. He's not.
[Jada] No, you can tell they're siblings.
Come on.
Oh, well, I like that
because he's handsome.
I would date him if he wasn't my brother.
No, careful, careful.
He's handsome. That's true.
- Okay, guys, let's go.
- Let's go.
[in Italian]
How the fuck do you drink these?
With your mouth, love.
T-Rawws, rock my own kick game
Eight-figure deal
Figure how I'm courtside at clip game
Still pop ace king shit
I'm with Rozay
Black Maybach leather gloves
On that OJ
Okay, the day you beating me, bitch
No day
Bandz a make her dance
That's thousand dollar foreplay
AK, get a full clip, not a soundwave
You kissed her in her mouth
Ask her how my dick taste
Bitch nigga, you don't want no drama
I'm worth a couple commas
It's death before dishonor
Last king come sign up
All my shit be designer
Extraordinary rhymer
I bodied yo' shit for nothin'
Wes, west up, hot temper
Get wet up
She give me head, not neck up
She clean the mess up
One false move, death from gesture
Cash in the safe, nigga
I don't feel no pressure
I'm dope
[indistinct chatter]
Oh, shit. I can't find my lighter.
- How can you have lost it?
- Don't you have one?
No, love.
[in English] Sorry. Do you have a lighter?
[woman 1] No, I don't.
Do you have a lighter?
- [woman 2] Sure.
- Thank you.
- [woman 2] I love your dress.
- [Arianna] Thanks. I love yours.
- Where are you from?
- I'm from London.
- He's William.
- Nice to meet you.
He is not my boyfriend. He's gay.
I like your piercings.
Thank you very much.
[Grazia in Italian] He's hot!
I got on two chains
No, I ain't Tity Boi
I'm dream chasing
But I ain't from Philly, boy
Bitch bad
And she said I can get it, boy
This a hit
And I'ma make a nigga feel it, boy
My flow deranged, my swag insane
And my campaign on ten
I like the bitch, she bad as fuck
But I'm really into her friend
House up on the hill
Got it off of cocaine
Aventador Lamborghini
Condo off of Biscayne
Bitch, I'm in my lane
Fresh as hell, no stains
Robin's Jean with the stones
Giuseppe's match my chain
I'm different, I was built for this
My bitch only rock Tiffany
You a rat, you'll sing a symphony
And I'm back, street's been missing me
My watch silly, my clock ignorant
And I'm the king of my city
I'm ban'd up and I ain't in a band
But my flow just like an instrument
Bass, feel that yellow tape
Of the trizack
Hating is a disease
Pussy, where they do that?
L.A. Reid, cut the check for me
King shit
And you know what it is
Shorty smell like a pound of that loud
But a nigga look like a hundred mil
But I drive Ferrari
Fuck the motherfucking dealer
Pay ten million for a mansion
That worth more than your opinion
[Arianna] Remember that desperate guy
who tried to hit on me and Grazia?
[Arianna and Grazia laugh]
[man] Thank goodness he left
or I'd have taken care of him.
I'd have smashed him in the kisser.
[Grazia] Cut that out.
Lele, don't puke here
or they'll throw us off the bus.
Huh?
Don't puke here, they'll kick up a fuss.
I can't hold it in. [vomits]
[coughs]
What an asshole!
[Arianna] You're like a three-year-old.
I'm only joking.
Can you believe
he can't hold his drink at 19!?
He's practically a kid.
[Leonardo groans]
God forbid, if I hadn't puked
at the end of the night...
I wouldn't have had fun.
[in English] So, what are you gonna study
here and at which university?
[in English] Um, business
at Brampton University.
That must be so interesting.
Yeah. Yeah, it's cool.
- It's cool.
- [man in Italian] To answer the question
you asked before,
it's going well.
With the tables at Libertine and Maddox,
I've made at least... 3,000 quid.
[in Italian] Yes, Mr. 3,000 Quid,
will you let me and Grazia in on Friday?
- Lele, do you want to come?
- Yes.
If it's you guys, okay, but the guys
mustn't outnumber the girls.
But you can certainly come in.
[Grazia] What's up, Lele?
You're strange, you're quiet.
[Arianna] He's always strange.
[Leonardo] I'm tired.
[Arianna] Giulia says even when
Lele's present, he's not really.
[Leonardo] Whatever.
[raindrops pattering]
[footsteps running]
[door opens]
- [Arianna] Hi.
- Hi.
[door closes]
Don't get up, I'll wash the dishes again.
When do you start uni?
Monday.
Didn't you have open days?
- Yes, but I didn't bother.
- They're helpful!
- They do fuck all!
- That's not true.
They explain the layout of the building,
you meet the staff.
Have you seen where the university is,
at least?
Yes, Zone 4.
And how are you going
to get there every day?
You'll have to move closer.
Are you looking for a place
or facing a three-hour commute?
- I'm looking on the Internet a bit.
- What do you mean "a bit," Lele?
You're so disorganized!
- Did you eat my yogurts?
- Yes, one.
Darn it, why didn't you ask me first?
- You're a pain in the ass.
- No, you're a pain.
If you eat my stuff, I go fucking hungry.
That's all I eat, okay?
Someone left the stove on.
It stunk of gas.
I turned it off after I used it.
I haven't even eaten, so...
- Okay, it's my fault.
- Do you want to blow us up?
I knew I'd get killed
thanks to a classmate!
Do something at least. Clean up.
I found your dirty cotton buds
in the bathroom.
[Arianna] You are so gross!
[footsteps approaching]
- Lele, aren't you coming?
- No.
How the fuck can you stay in
on Friday night?
Come on, we'll wait,
but you'd better hurry up.
Don't call me Lele. It's shitty.
And I'm not coming.
- Okay, bye.
- Bye.
- Bye.
- Bye.
THE BEST ITALIAN UNIVERSITIES
FOR STUDYING LITERATURE.
APPLICATION
REQUEST ENROLLMEN- Hi, sweetie, we're over there.
- Thanks, I have to go.
Oh, so sorry...
Hi, love...
Is the food any good?
[bell tolling]
[mellow music playing]
I spoke to your dad.
I told him there's no Internet.
He said it's not a problem.
You don't have Wi-Fi?
I don't have a lot of data.
There's no Wi-Fi. We're having work done,
but it'll take some time.
If you need to, come to our hotel
next door, we've got Wi-Fi there.
Okay, thanks.
Hello, girls.
- These are your flatmates.
- [Leonardo] Hi.
Shall we go to your room?
This is the room.
The window has a spectacular view.
Your bed. A bathroom with a shower.
You've got my number.
If you need anything,
the hotel's next door.
- Look on Google Maps, Alma Domus.
- Perfect.
[mellow music playing]
PIETRO GIORDANI - EPISTOLARY
- I'm hungry.
- Just a sec. It's coming up.
- I'm starving.
- You never change.
Hi. We didn't introduce ourselves.
- Leonardo.
- Nice to meet you, I'm Serena.
I'm Valentina, hello.
[chuckles]
Sorry, I'm cooking some sauce,
but I won't be long.
- Take your time.
- Thanks, I will then.
I'm making some meat sauce,
do you fancy some?
Thanks, but I'm a vegetarian.
I don't eat meat.
We'll never eat together. I love meat.
- It's true, she's a glutton!
- Let's hope not!
- How do you like Siena?
- I like it a lot.
- You here for university or work?
- University.
University, great!
- I'm studying Literature. You?
- I'm studying Law. Shoot me.
You always exaggerate.
I'm in the fourth year of Medicine.
I bet it's your first year, right?
- Yes, my first year.
- I thought so.
- When do your lectures start?
- Next week.
Such injustice! Only law students
start two weeks before.
Listen to her! I just knew it!
- Have you started already?
- Yes, last Monday.
Ditto.
[Valentina giggles]
Good evening.
- I'm the tenant...
- Wait.
I'm the tenant,
I'm looking for the owner of...
- The apartment...
- What are you saying?
- The man with the bizarre glasses.
- Yes.
Good evening.
He's the student who's staying
in Vicolo del Tiratoio apartment.
- The Wi-Fi details.
- Thanks a lot.
JUSTIN BIEBER PHOTOGRAPHED NAKED
THE SINGER WAS SPOTTED UNCLOTHED
IN BORA BORA
[playing cheerful music]
Shh!
Are you nuts?
- Sorry.
- Do you want to wake all the guests?
- I'm sorry.
- Like hell you are!
Sorry.
[door closes]
[man] "Perhaps in every state
beneath the sun
Or high, or low,
in cradle or in stall
The day of birth is
fatal to us all."
[mellow classical music playing]
- Good morning.
- Good morning.
- Have you got an electric hotplate?
- Yes, I'll get it for you.
- I need a pot and pan too.
- Okay.
Fucking god!
[sniffing]
It fucking stinks!
I can't use it anymore, damn it.
A BREATH OF CORRUPTED AIR
IMBUED EACH OF MY NERVES.
I want to commit suicide.
I want to commit suicide.
I want to commit suicide.
I want to kill myself.
I want to kill myself.
I want to kill myself.
I want to die. I want to die.
I want to die.
I want to croak. I want to croak.
Snuff it.
Pass away.
I want to kill myself.
Okay...
It takes patience.
HEALTH: IS LIMESCALE IN TAP WATER HARMFUL?
SEARCH: ELEMENTS IN WATER
THAT SEEP INTO THE BRAIN
[clattering outside]
[loud clattering]
[playful classical music playing]
[singing in Italian]
PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL
[indistinct chatter]
[woman] Hey...
- What's your name?
- Me?
What's your name?
Leonardo. Leonardo.
Ah, okay.
- And yours?
- Giulia.
Give me your number.
I'll add you to our WhatsApp group.
Okay.
Right, 3-3-4...
- 8-6-7...
- Okay.
- 9-2-6-2.
- I'll add you.
Okay, thanks.
- Good morning.
- [students] Good morning.
Don't get up.
[chatter stops]
[professor] Right, I believe
that it is crucial,
in order to understand Dante's work,
to understand
the relationship between the Divine Comedy
and Vita Nova.
That is, his youthful work,
written between 1292
and 1294...
A work containing both verse and prose.
BETTER A SHOT IN THE HEAD!
Like certain works of art...
Hi, Leonardo. I'm from Siena,
but I can't catch your accent.
- Are you from Turin?
- Turin? No.
No one's ever said that before.
I'm from Palermo.
Ah, okay. I wasn't far out.
Check if I added you to the group chat.
- You did, thanks.
- Have a look, you never know.
Wait a sec.
- Let me see.
- Here.
Okay, I believe you.
I wasn't sure, because
you haven't written anything.
We organize loads of things
if you're interested.
We go out, have fun,
we go for a beer sometimes.
We sometimes go dancing outside Siena.
- We play the guitar and ukulele.
- Really?
Yes, it's fantastic.
- We're a great group.
- All from Siena?
No, I have a friend from Florence,
then two guys from Calabria,
- two from Poggibonsi.
- There's a lot of you!
Yes! One from San Gimignano.
There are lots of us. Too many.
- No...
- And now we have you.
- All right.
- Okay.
I'll see you then. I'm going this way.
What a pity. See you again then, okay?
- See you again.
- I'll see you then. Have a nice day.
In this canto, it would seem that
his main source
was the inscriptions on tombs,
mainly in Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna.
DANTIST OR DENTIST?
Great, it doesn't stink anymore!
[spits]
Oh, no, just something
that stank of toxic plastic.
I'm fucking bored after my third lecture.
His lectures on Dante are awful,
endless mind masturbation that...
Dante was inspired by tombstones and such.
I'm not interested in theories
founded on nothing.
I want to read him,
be amazed, get excited.
He just makes the usual trivial comments
on the most famous cantos of "Inferno"
like Roberto Benigni does.
I swear, for some of the verses
he chooses the most stupid
interpretation, belied by the best.
Why do I have to attend lectures?
If I can spend the time
studying more useful material,
more sophisticated, profound,
beautiful. Why do I bother?
Once, university professors were
Parini, Giambattista Vico, Carducci.
Now we have this wimp,
who's deader than a corpse.
And this is in the top university
for Literature in Italy
according to Censis,
the fucking research institute!
What do I do? I'll finish reading
"Purgatorio" and "Paradiso."
With the interpretations, the good ones...
Then I'll take the exam.
[cell phone buzzes]
HI, LEONARDO, ARE YOU JOINING US LATER?
ASSHOLE, STOP PISSING ME OFF.
HI, I DIDN'T ANSWER BEFORE
AS I WASN'T SURE.
I'M GOING TO ROME TO SEE SOME FRIENDS.
MAYBE NEXT TIME.
DANIELLO BARTOLI
LIFE OF FATHER VINCENZO CARAFA
"She would punish herself
with an iron chain
and the blood would flow
from her flesh onto the ground.
Indeed, it looked as though
an animal had been slaughtered.
The humblest tasks led to
her hands becoming calloused
and she would contemplate them
with pleasure.
And in winter, with the cold,
they would bleed heavily.
When people advised her to use a remedy,
she decided to do so.
But as she yearned to suffer,
she used it to irritate the wounds
rather than heal them.
And she would wash
and rub them with ash and water."
The Dante of Italian prose...
"Fair was he and of gentle aspect.
But a blow had split one of his eyebrows.
When I humbly told him I'd never seen him,
he said, 'Now look' and
showed me a wound on his chest.
Then, smiling, he said, 'I am Manfredi.'"
[cell phone ringing]
Mom?
Leonardo, how are you?
I'm fine.
- How's university going?
- Not bad.
- Have you no lectures today?
- Not today.
- You are attending, aren't you?
- Yes, Mom, holy fuck!
What did you say?
Nothing.
I'm stressed out enough with exams,
then you play the cop.
Why are you so mean to me?
Mom.
I mean...
Wear your shirt for the exam,
or they'll lower your mark.
Jesus Christ!
Okay, goodbye.
Bye.
Talk to me about...
Clear, sweet, fresh water.
Analyze the text from here.
"Grass and flowers which her dress
lightly covered the angelic breast."
That is, the grass pressed on her skirt
seeing she's sitting on the grass.
Um, whereas the flowers fell on her breast
from the branches of the tree.
No.
- What?
- That's not what it means.
Where?
"Ricoverse co' l'angelico seno."
That's what it appears to mean.
- What does "seno" mean?
- Breast.
No, it's the bodice of the dress.
I'll ask you a quick question
about general literature.
- Then we'll go to Dante.
- Yes.
How is Parini's The Day divided up?
The poem is divided
into the young man's day.
Mattino, Meriggio, Vespero and Notte.
Perhaps you mean "Vespro," vespers.
"Vespero" is a different thing altogether.
Now tell me about Dante's sources.
Did you read my book?
Um...
Did you or didn't you?
I didn't know there was a book.
So you didn't attend my lectures?
All right.
Right...
analyze
canto 11 of "Purgatorio."
"In painting Cimabue
thought that he should hold the field,
now Giotto has the cry
so that the other's fame is growing dim.
So has one Guido from the other taken
the glory of our tongue,
and he perchance is born,
who from the nest shall chase them both."
So it starts with the example
in figurative art, painting.
Cimabue thought he was the best painter,
but now, in Dante's day,
Giotto is more famous
and has taken his place,
and Cimabue is almost forgotten.
He gives an example in poetry and speaks
of Guido Guinizzelli and Guido Cavalcanti.
In Dante's day,
Calvalcanti outclasses Guinizzelli.
Then he adds there could be a poet
who dethrones them both.
In short, he speaks of the vanity of fame.
And who was it who
"chased them from the nest"?
He could be talking about himself.
But actually,
some interpreters believe
he can't be talking about himself.
Why not?
Because it would be absurd
that in the canto that punishes pride
Dante himself acts proud.
- And who said that?
- Tommaseo, for example.
He's from 200 years ago!
Yes, yes.
From the mid-19th century.
I see my assistant gave you a 26.
I'll confirm that mark.
Can I refuse the mark?
Yes.
Then I'll refuse it.
Then you can come back next time
and get another 26.
We'll see.
- So you intend to refuse it?
- Yes, please.
Okay.
- Goodbye.
- Goodbye.
Give your daughter a 26, asshole!
VESPRO AND VESPERO:
LATE HOUR TOWARDS EVENING.
They're the same word!
Daniello agrees, you shit!
Castelvetro agrees with me too, dickhead!
Leopardi agrees with me, asshole!
Carducci agrees with me, Christ Almighty!
Even the contemporaries do!
Can you imagine, he didn't know
his "vespero" from his "vespro."
It's fallen out of use,
but it means the same thing.
And he treated me like shit
because I told him
a mid-19th-century Dante scholar
had an opinion on some verses.
They should shoot themselves
through the head.
I'll do something crazy
and get kicked out.
I've written a dialogue against
the professor and his assistant.
I'll print it and leave it
around the university.
- And fuck off.
- [cell phone buzzing]
- Hello?
- Hi, your dad's here too.
- Hi.
- [Mom] Did you take the exam?
- How did it go?
- I got a 28.
- Well done.
- I deserved more.
- [Dad] Then why didn't you get it?
- 'Cause he doesn't understand a thing.
[Dad] Sure, of course,
the professors are always the problem.
First at high school, now university.
You don't think it could be you?
Okay, I'll shut up.
[Dad] I'm starting to have doubts.
[Leonardo] The professor is ignorant.
- Good morning.
- Good morning.
- I'd like to make some copies, please.
- Good.
Goodbye.
[Mom] As long as you took the exam,
forget about the professor.
I can't. I'll be taking other exams
with him, and I don't want to.
[Dad] High school was no good,
same with the university
in London, now here?
[Leonardo] You coerced me
into going to London.
THE PROFESSOR SWEARS TO FOREVER CURE,
WITH HIS LESSONS ON DANTE,
JUVENILE INSOMNIA.
You held me back from studying on my own
with financial, psychological,
and almost physical violence.
[Dad] That's enough of this nonsense.
HE IS NOT WORTH A HANGNAIL
OF A BUTI OR A LANDINO.
[Mom] Is everything else okay?
When's your next exam?
[Leonardo] Everything's fine.
I don't know when the next one is.
- [Mom] Okay.
- [Leonardo] Bye.
THE BOORISH BARKER OF AN ASSISTANIS THERE BECAUSE SHE IS HIS MISTRESS.
[playful music playing]
VIRGIL'S LETTERS AND LITERARY LIFE
[indistinct arguing in distance]
GASPARO GOZZI - IN DEFENSE OF DANTE
WORKS BY FATHER DANIELLO BARTOLI
ISTORIA DELLA COMPAGNIA DI GES, ASIA
WRITTEN BY FATHER DANIELLO BARTOLI
"His legs had been rotting for many years,
they were covered in ulcers and maggots
and were so painful
he couldn't even put
his foot down on the ground.
In the last period of his life,
he suffered from terrible dysentery,
which, in a man like him,
who was almost 60
and already corroded by sores,
was deemed irreparably fatal."
FINISHED READING JANUARY 2015, CAMBRIDGE
GIACOMO LEOPARDI -LETTERS
BUT PERHAPS YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT SO FAR
I HAVE GATHERED FROM MY STUDIES
NO OTHER FRUIT THAN SUFFERING.
FRAILTY OF BODY;
DEEPEST AND EVERLASTING DEPRESSION
OF SPIRITS;
MY TOWNSFOLK'S CONTEMPT AND MOCKERIES.
[woman over phone] Silly!
Carlo Lolli got Lucrezia Passavia
to give him a blindfold blowjob.
Fuck!
Well, Carlo Lolli is an asshole,
he's a bag of piss!
Only 12-year-olds do stuff like that!
Anyway, to me, I think they're...
You don't say "to me, I think."
You can say it, it's just some crap
they told us at primary school.
Leo, I read The Betrothed when I was ten.
Trust me, I know what I'm saying,
and it is wrong.
Okay, but what if I tell you
authoritative writers on language
use it without qualms? Even Manzoni.
No, it's grammatically incorrect,
it's just wrong.
Who says it's wrong?
Is there a grammar god?
Because people
and authoritative language scholars
both use it, so there.
Why should you and primary school
teachers say what is wrong?
Because "to me, I think" is like saying
"I eat I eat", doesn't make sense.
- That's not the same thing at all.
- Don't be so pompous!
- You're right.
- Trust me for once!
You're not the only one who studies!
Anyway, I've sent you a great meme.
Let's see.
SILVIA, RE-MY-MEMBER
Hello?
BLOCK.
BLOCK PAOLA?
HISTORY OF ITALIAN LITERATURE
MARINO OF PROSE WAS DANIELLO BARTOLI
But what have they got in common?
They're as different
as the sun and the moon.
HE WAS IN ALMOSEVERY CORNER OF THE EARTH.
I've got you there!
Everyone knows he never left Italy,
motherfucking ignorant!
You can read it in any preface
from any of his books.
From Marietti on,
even the Neapolitan editions of Asia.
No, I don't want this guy in my bookcase.
And remember, he called Castiglione
mediocre too.
I'll throw it out the window
like Alfieri did with Galateo.
Only I can't change my mind like he did.
I'd hit myself over the head first.
And fancy me reading fashion criticism!
I'll pee on it instead of chucking it.
Fuck you.
YOUR BALANCE
SEXUAL ENCOUNTERS, SIENA
19-YEAR-OLD GUY WITH NO EXPERIENCE
IN STUFF LIKE THIS,
DESCRIBED AS GOOD-LOOKING
BY OTHERS: MERCENARY.
HI, 100 EUROS FOR FULL INTERCOURSE.
CAN YOU SEND A PHOTO?
NO, IF YOU DON'T FANCY ME,
YOU CAN TELL ME WHEN YOU SEE ME.
I WANT 300 FOR PARTIAL INTERCOURSE.
[birds chirping]
Fucking hell!
[birds chirping]
[bells tolling in distance]
What the fuck!
[Valentina] I was carrying the cake
in one hand and the trash in the other.
- Guess which I threw away?
- The cake.
Hi.
- Knife.
- Hm.
Just think what happened
to that poor cake.
[laughing]
[indistinct conversation]
ON THE EVENING OF ST. PETER'S DAY,
MY NAME DAY,
WHILE WE WERE PLAYING MINCHIATE,
THE CARD GAME...
[man] "O bright illusions
of my early years!
Whenever I talk, I come around to you,
for though time passes
and affections and ideas change,
I can't forget you.
Glory and honor
are phantoms,
joys and things mere wishes.
Life, worthless misery, bears no fruit.
Yet sometimes I think back on you,
old hopes of mine..."
[dramatic music playing]
LET'S GO AND GET IT TOGETHER
NOW THEY'VE GOT THE GOOD STUFF
I'LL LEND YOU THE MONEY
I'LL COME WITH YOU
BUT I WON'T HAVE ANY
IT'S BAD
WE'LL GO THERE AND YOU CAN TRY A BIOKAY, LET'S GO
FUCKING WORLD
IT'S GOOD, TRY IOKAY, BUT ONLY A LITTLE
IT WAS GOOD, SEE?
PERHAPS THE MAID PUT SOME LSD
IN THE WATER BOTTLE
SO YOUNG
IT'S NOT FAIR
HI, WE'RE GOING DANCING THE DAY
AFTER TOMORROW. YOU COMING?
"My motherland, beloved,
the life thou gav'st, I render to thee."
Come on, little one, don't worry.
No one's going to hurt you.
Show these fine gentlemen
what you're hiding under there.
Good girl.
Look at this marvel.
A delightful little bottom.
You'll never see a firmer one.
Two titties that would
resuscitate a dying man.
[man] That will do. Next one.
- Mom?
- Leonardo, how are you?
- Fine, and you?
- Fine. What's the weather like?
Nice, it's sunny.
I'm at work. Did you need something?
[inaudible dialogue]
[Leonardo] Um...
- Hello?
- Yeah, sorry.
I wanted to ask you if you
could send me an advance.
What do you need it for?
I bought some books for uni
and now I'm broke.
If I want to go out with friends,
for happy hour, a meal...
Okay, I'll send you something,
but don't waste it.
I don't find money on the ground.
- But all right.
- Yeah, thanks. Bye.
[inaudible dialogue]
- Good evening. You okay?
- Hi. I'm fine.
You're a night owl, aren't you?
I finish studying, then, you know,
some time on the Internet.
Did you do anything nice this weekend?
I went to a party outside Siena,
nothing special.
Well done, we've a little dancer here!
I went to Florence.
I come from Florence, I told you that.
My husband's from Siena, as I told you.
It was sunny and really hot
in Florence, not like here.
I got a suntan. Yes.
Look, you can see the mark.
Hm?
Yes, I can see it.
- Okay, have fun on the Internet.
- Yeah, see you later.
SIENA HIGH SCHOOLS
DUCCIO DI BUONINSEGNA SCHOOL OF ART.
[pensive music playing]
SARROCCHI TECHNICAL COLLEGE
AND HIGH SCHOOL.
What are you talking about, asshole?
I'd have to pretend that he is a girl
and she is a boy,
so then maybe it'll work out... Yeah.
Oh, God, I can't see anymore!
Can you take our picture?
Sure.
Can you take some in black and white?
Yes.
Thanks.
There you go.
You're hot!
Thank you.
[hip-hop music playing]
[hip-hop music continues over tablet]
[music stops]
FAVOURITE SONG AT THE MOMENT?
TEDUA'S LINGERIE
[hip-hop music playing]
[singing in Italian]
I'LL BE WITH YOU SOON, LITTLE BROTHER.
[lively music playing]
Hi. How are things?
Fine.
[doorbell rings]
- Baby!
- Hi.
- Hi, we managed it.
- Yeah, we managed it.
- How are things?
- Fine, and you?
- Fine. Is this the kitchen?
- Yes.
Wow.
And this is the corridor.
Hm.
And my room's there.
- Well, it's not too bad.
- No, it's not bad.
Damn, how many books have you bought?
I had some already.
Hm. How can you afford them?
I buy them for peanuts online, on eBay.
- How much does Mom give you?
- A hundred a week.
- Yeah, 100.
- You don't have to believe me.
Oh. Vernacular version of Acts of
the Apostles, by Fr. Domenico Cavalca,
Dominican friar. Mm, lots of fun!
Lots.
When did you last clean up?
It's covered in dust.
I haven't had much time.
I have to study, go to uni,
attend lectures, etc...
- What's that there?
- What?
- That, the hot plate.
- It's a hot plate.
I don't believe it, but why?
Do you cook in your room?
Why don't you use the kitchen?
Seeing that I cook legumes
that cook for 45 minutes...
I can't hog the kitchen every day,
all day long.
It's disgusting, it's got years
of food stuck to it. At least clean it!
The foam from black rice is a tough enemy.
You're really gross.
Well, then...
- What shall we do?
- What shall we do?
Do I get to meet your friends?
Have you plans?
I'll text them.
- Good.
- Thanks.
POO PISS...
Sent. Shall we go for a walk around Siena?
Of course.
[mellow music playing]
Fucking hell!
- Are you crazy?
- Are you stupid?
What if you fall? I can't stand heights.
No words.
A photo for Instagram.
[inaudible dialogue]
[Arianna] It's so gruesome!
AS YOU ARE NOW, I ONCE WAS.
AS I AM NOW, YOU WILL BE.
Will you massage my hand?
- Done!
- Come on!
Remember what you did as a kid?
- I won't fall for it again, eh?
- [chuckles]
I told you to go first, then when
it was my turn, I pretended to fall sleep.
What a cheek!
You've even the nerve to admit it!
And when I was five and got my first
Christmas and birthday money?
You asked me for it, and I handed it over.
What about it? We used it to buy rabbits.
Or to buy them food.
That was when I was about eight.
[Leonardo] What's wrong?
- You think I was a bad sister?
- I was only joking!
I was joking.
You shouldn't say these things,
you know I'm sensitive.
[Leonardo] Jeez! I'm whacked!
Mm. What did your friends say?
Um...
They suggested something,
but I'm half dead.
- Hm.
- Do you mind if we stay home?
Are you very tired, love?
- Half dead.
- Okay, we'll stay home then.
- But I wanted to meet your friends.
- I know.
But you could have stayed
another day, right?
I know, you're right, it's just...
it's Martina's birthday, you know.
If I don't go, she'll never
forgive me. What can I do?
Yeah.
TRAP IS INGURGITATED AMERICAN PUKE,
RE-PUKED IN HALF-ITALIAN.
DAMAGING FOR SOCIETY.
REMEMBER HOW THE VERSE OF A FOUL SONG
COULD BECOME THE RULE
IN YOUR EARLY ADOLESCENCE.
MUSICIANS BEFORE WERE NO GENTLEMEN.
TAKE THOSE MURDERERS THE BEATLES
AND PINK FLOYD WHO PRAISED DRUGS,
WITH THE AGGRAVATING CIRCUMSTANCE
OF SHOWING OFF
PHONY CULTURE AND INTELLIGENCE.
COMPARE PLATO IN THE REPUBLIC,
SIENESE AND VENETIAN EDITION.
I AM A HOPELESS DESPERATE.
[cell phone ringing]
Hey, who's this?
[chuckles]
I'd love to see you.
MILAN
I have to come outside to smoke
a joint, or the warden complains.
- Even at night?
- Yes, the son of a bitch is always here.
He never sleeps. He's nice,
but he busts your balls over a joint.
I'm so glad you came.
- My cousin from Palermo!
- You know I'm up for anything, right?
Like in Barcelona, they were all wimps.
And we painted the town red.
- When we went out whoring?
- Yeah, and the cleanest had scabies!
- How are things in Siena?
- Siena's beautiful.
I go out sometimes,
go to discos outside Siena.
Some pussy. Then I study.
- No, I don't smoke.
- It's from Barcelona.
You've given it up?
Too much crap hashish from Ballar?
I only drink alcohol now.
Anyway, Lele. Bocconi Uni is great, but...
I'm fucking sick of studying Law.
I've realized it's not my scene.
I'm more interested in... the humanities.
In art, you know.
- Do you still want to be a writer?
- Yes, more or less.
Have you read Pasolini's Corsair Writings?
No.
- It's super interesting.
- I'm not that keen on Pasolini.
- I reckon he writes badly.
- Badly?
He writes bad Italian, that is...
- You can't understand him.
- I understand him.
And he accuses everyone
of being a moralist, as an insult.
Whereas I think that's a good thing.
The 20th century should have
a nice X written across it.
Literature and art were destroyed.
Language study was completely abandoned.
The rhythm and formation of sentences,
a corrupted language.
But language changes over time.
It changes by becoming corrupt.
The Italian language is full
of French and English expressions.
Like in Latin, after Virgil,
Tacitus and Cicero,
we got the corrupt Baroque of
Seneca, Lucan, Statius.
You have erudite tastes?
I bet you like Mozart and Beethoven?
No, actually, Paisiello and Cimarosa.
- Ever heard trap music?
- Yes.
A friend played me some.
I can't make out a fucking word.
There's this place in Siena
where kids of 14 and 15 hang out.
They're completely different
from us at that age.
In the way they dress,
the music they listen to,
their way of thinking.
I thought things would remain
more or less the same.
I never imagined the possibility
of a generational change.
Yes, but it's gross. I have
a 14-year-old cousin who's really...
He's half stupid
and his friends are the same.
They're all fucked up.
All they think about
is money, cars, clothes.
They really have...
something wrong with their brain.
Yes, it's getting worse.
And when it does improve,
it's like when I do drugs.
I feel better at first,
then I am shittier than before.
Come on, let's go.
Ready for The Leopard?
Damn, you're guzzling it down!
How much have you drunk?
All in one go?
All in one go, don't stop!
["Light it Up" playing on radio]
Danger them is
While some call them Major Lazer
This song is cocaine!
May I, mister?
Yeah, I know you're built like that
Gun it like a holster, baby
Show dem say you wicked like that
We live where the war is raging
Chasing our crazy dreams
Hoping that the bridge won't cave in
Tonight we let it all go free
Gimme the ting
And make me rock in a dance
Mash it up, hot step in a dance
Gimme the ting and make me
Rock, rock, rock, rock
Gimme the ting
And make me rock in a dance
Mash it up, hot step in a dance
Gimme the ting and make me
Light it up
["Under Control" playing]
I might be anyone
A lone fool out in the sun
Your heartbeat of solid gold
I love you, you'll never know
When the daylight comes
You feel so cold, you know
I'm too afraid of my heart
To let you go
Waitin' for the fire to light
Feelin' like we could do right
Be the one that makes tonight
'Cause freedom is a lonely road
We're under control
Waitin' for the fire to light
Feelin' like we could do right
Be the one that makes tonight
'Cause freedom is a lonely road
We're under control
We're under control
- [woman] Are you okay?
- [man] Ignore that poor guy.
No way, he's not well.
Hey.
I'm calling an ambulance.
[cousin] Don't you worry,
we'll get him home.
[paramedic] He needs to go to A&E.
We'll take him there
and you can come to the hospital
later if you want. Okay?
Bye.
Motherfuckers!
Fucking hell, now I'll have
to go to the hospital and...
I wanted to go and sleep this off.
Fucking hell!
Shall we get a drink?
[siren wailing]
[silence]
[birds chirping]
[commentator
speaking indistinctly on tablet]
[commentator continues
speaking indistinctly on tablet]
BUT IF I COULD SEE
THE SOUL OF GUIDO, OR ALESSANDRO,
FOR BRANDA'S FOUNI WOULD NOT GIVE THE SIGHT.
[choral music playing]
WORKS BY PIETRO METASTASIO
CATO AT UTICA
[choral music continues]
[opera music playing]
A MONTH LATER
TURIN
A YEAR LATER
[indistinct chatter]
Great film, though. It was awesome.
Photography was a bit like Storaro's, eh?
- Well...
- It was cool.
I was fired up after five minutes.
I came out happy, you know.
Cool.
I'd had enough after a while.
Where's this dinner then?
- On Corso Galileo Ferraris.
- Who invited you?
Dunno, some guy Grandma met somewhere.
She forced me to meet him.
What a fucking bore! This sucks.
- Bound to be a pain in the ass.
- I know.
I'm going home. I have to catch
an early train to Milan tomorrow.
You taking a taxi?
I don't know, I'm heading that way.
- It was great to see you.
- Same here.
- Keep in touch.
- Yeah.
Bye, cuz.
- Good evening.
- [man] Come in.
I'll take that. Thank you.
Thank you.
This way.
- Good evening.
- Hello.
- You are?
- Leonardo Gravina, Antonella's grandson.
You're early.
Sorry.
Leonardo, what are you studying?
Uh, literature.
What kind of literature do you like?
Italian, pre-20th century.
For example?
14th-century Tuscan authors.
Pulci, Segneri, Leopardi...
Foscolo...
Hm, I prefer Monti or Giordani.
When did Giordani live?
Uh, he's Leopardi's contemporary.
What if I mentioned Vittorini,
Fenoglio or Gadda?
No.
Have you heard of them?
- Mm, by name.
- Conservative tastes then.
Where did you get this inclination?
I like how they write, their style.
I wanted to write, and I feel
I learn much more from them.
Back then, the language was different,
and they also taught me a lot...
about morality.
So Gramsci or Pasolini are immoral,
they write badly?
- [clears throat]
- Pasolini...
I find Gramsci's language
and style rather simple.
Ah.
I read some of his Letters from Prison.
Hmm.
What about the psychoanalysts?
Freud, Lacan,
or Fachinelli,
seeing you prefer the Italians.
No.
Listen, is there someone in your family
who shares your taste in literature?
No, they make fun of me, in fact.
Even my grandmother, who's 87.
And she should like anything ancient.
Leonardo, how old are you?
Nineteen. Sorry, twenty last week.
Listen.
The young ISIS terrorists,
suicide bombers,
are between 17 and 23 years old,
sons of immigrants to Europe
who never fit in.
But if one of these had been born in Italy
and was a lover of literature,
I would imagine him to be just like you.
But maybe for some things,
fanaticism can lead us to excellence.
Be careful, be careful of fanaticism
which can lead to stupidity
and fabrication.
Okay, we know well the reasons
ISIS exists.
But who was it that compressed
and crushed you
to this extent?
Uh...
Where did you get this need for morality?
Uh...
Maybe because if I'd had
a more rigid morality,
the kind the authors I read teach us,
I'd have been happier.
I'd have avoided doing certain things,
that turned out to be catastrophic.
I believe humans need restraint.
Be careful, be careful,
because your particular case
does not count as a universal case.
Many people came to a sticky end
for the opposite reason.
And why did you commit
these destructive deeds?
Maybe you should ponder instead
on the system
that incorporated you,
that made you what you are
and made you do those
catastrophic things you talk about, hm?
Okay,
an excessive death instinct
if we wish to psychoanalyze it.
In short, you're a poor wretch.
So my home makes you puke,
design, contemporary art,
20th century.
No, no, I like it, it's very beautiful.
You are very flattering.
Listen, do you like lentils?
Yes, very much so.
Good, I asked them to make
a pumpkin and lentil soup.
Perfect, thank you.
If I'd known what you were like,
I'd have requested a 19th-century recipe.
[mellow music playing]
[music ends]
[birds chirping]
[footsteps]
[inhales then exhales]
[woman] Why are you sleeping
in your sister's room and not yours?
The bathroom's closer.
Where'd you get this?
I found it.
You were so cute.
Is that any way to fold shirts?
You're a moron.
You button it all the way up.
Not like that. Let me do it.
Look.
It wasn't that difficult.
Mm-hm.
[traffic humming]
Leonardo, check your suitcase.
You didn't load it right.
- What's wrong with it?
- It's wobbling. If I brake hard,
it'll fall on you,
and you'll be killed outright.
Have you got everything?
- Everything?
- Yes.
- Ticket? ID?
- Got it.
- Mobile phone?
- Got it.
- Phone charger?
- Got it.
- Computer?
- Yes.
- Computer plug?
- Wait.
- I think I've forgotten my ID card.
- What?
- [brakes squeal]
- [horn honks]
- Really?
- Just joking.
You really are a blockhead.
Do you know that?
- It's dangerous to joke in a car.
- Sorry.
Fuck you! From the depths of my soul!
You don't joke around in a car.
You die in a car!
Sorry, sorry.
What are your plans when
you get to London? What will you do?
I land at Heathrow...
No, sorry, at Gatwick.
- Oh, Blessed Mother!
- Gatwick.
I woke up last night with a nosebleed.
You have weak capillaries, like me.
I suffered from nosebleeds
when I was a kid.
I couldn't stop it,
I nearly bled to death.
- Oh, that bad?
- Yeah.
Perhaps I should get it checked out.
You don't need to get it checked out,
it's nothing serious.
[pensive music playing]
[beeping]
LONDON
Uh, I'm outside.
Okay, I'll be right there.
My little brother!
- How are you?
- Fine, you?
- Fine. How was your flight?
- Fine.
Go through.
I can't believe you're here, I swear.
Happy to become a Londoner, sweetie?
Sure. Yeah.
That last day, I said to my class,
"I never want to see you again!"
And now I'm here in London with Leonardo.
You made friends with my sister.
- [cell phone chimes]
- It's not my fault.
Leonardo, it's always your fault.
The bastard received the plant.
Really? What did he say?
He sent me the photo, the fucker.
What's up?
- I'm embarrassed to tell Leonardo.
- Go on, tell him!
The thing is, I screwed this guy
who didn't tell me he had thrush.
So I sent a cactus to his office
with a note, "Thanks for thrush."
Black paper in a black envelope.
- Sorry, but what's thrush?
- Leonardo, are you for real?
Love, it's a venereal disease.
- And what happens?
- I'll let you Google that.
Don't worry, we'll have
a great time at Maddox tonight.
Yeah, then I'll find another.
I forgot to tell you,
we're eating here first,
then we're going to Maddox.
- Which one is Maddox?
- The one we went to last year
in the Piccadilly area.
We went together once.
- What kind of music do they play?
- Hip-hop stuff.
The place they let you in for free because
you're nice and you have pussies?
- That's right.
- Okay then.
Shall we cook some pasta?
Will you lend me
your snakeskin boots, doll?
- Of course, babe.
- Thanks.
[classical music playing]
Let's grab some booze.
Ceydou's waiting at the tube station.
- Who's Ceydou?
- My Turkish friend.
A hot babe.
- Will this do?
- Yes.
Come on. Let's go.
Man up.
[clerk] No, no, no.
- Have you got your Oyster card?
- Yes.
- [Arianna] Will you hurry up?
- I can't find it.
- Your eyes look a bit yellow.
- I can't open them in the morning.
- That's so funny!
- You're laughing at my suffering.
Shut up, Leonardo, and tickle my arm.
You're always on bullshitting.
- [Arianna in English] Hey.
- [woman] Hey!
[Arianna] Sorry we're late.
- He's my brother.
- Hi. I'm Jada.
[in English] I'm Leonardo.
Oh, my God. You guys look so alike.
Look at the eyes. The shape.
- You're already drunk, right?
- No.
No, I swear. Help me, Grazia.
They're certainly different, Jada.
She's an angel. He's not.
[Jada] No, you can tell they're siblings.
Come on.
Oh, well, I like that
because he's handsome.
I would date him if he wasn't my brother.
No, careful, careful.
He's handsome. That's true.
- Okay, guys, let's go.
- Let's go.
[in Italian]
How the fuck do you drink these?
With your mouth, love.
T-Rawws, rock my own kick game
Eight-figure deal
Figure how I'm courtside at clip game
Still pop ace king shit
I'm with Rozay
Black Maybach leather gloves
On that OJ
Okay, the day you beating me, bitch
No day
Bandz a make her dance
That's thousand dollar foreplay
AK, get a full clip, not a soundwave
You kissed her in her mouth
Ask her how my dick taste
Bitch nigga, you don't want no drama
I'm worth a couple commas
It's death before dishonor
Last king come sign up
All my shit be designer
Extraordinary rhymer
I bodied yo' shit for nothin'
Wes, west up, hot temper
Get wet up
She give me head, not neck up
She clean the mess up
One false move, death from gesture
Cash in the safe, nigga
I don't feel no pressure
I'm dope
[indistinct chatter]
Oh, shit. I can't find my lighter.
- How can you have lost it?
- Don't you have one?
No, love.
[in English] Sorry. Do you have a lighter?
[woman 1] No, I don't.
Do you have a lighter?
- [woman 2] Sure.
- Thank you.
- [woman 2] I love your dress.
- [Arianna] Thanks. I love yours.
- Where are you from?
- I'm from London.
- He's William.
- Nice to meet you.
He is not my boyfriend. He's gay.
I like your piercings.
Thank you very much.
[Grazia in Italian] He's hot!
I got on two chains
No, I ain't Tity Boi
I'm dream chasing
But I ain't from Philly, boy
Bitch bad
And she said I can get it, boy
This a hit
And I'ma make a nigga feel it, boy
My flow deranged, my swag insane
And my campaign on ten
I like the bitch, she bad as fuck
But I'm really into her friend
House up on the hill
Got it off of cocaine
Aventador Lamborghini
Condo off of Biscayne
Bitch, I'm in my lane
Fresh as hell, no stains
Robin's Jean with the stones
Giuseppe's match my chain
I'm different, I was built for this
My bitch only rock Tiffany
You a rat, you'll sing a symphony
And I'm back, street's been missing me
My watch silly, my clock ignorant
And I'm the king of my city
I'm ban'd up and I ain't in a band
But my flow just like an instrument
Bass, feel that yellow tape
Of the trizack
Hating is a disease
Pussy, where they do that?
L.A. Reid, cut the check for me
King shit
And you know what it is
Shorty smell like a pound of that loud
But a nigga look like a hundred mil
But I drive Ferrari
Fuck the motherfucking dealer
Pay ten million for a mansion
That worth more than your opinion
[Arianna] Remember that desperate guy
who tried to hit on me and Grazia?
[Arianna and Grazia laugh]
[man] Thank goodness he left
or I'd have taken care of him.
I'd have smashed him in the kisser.
[Grazia] Cut that out.
Lele, don't puke here
or they'll throw us off the bus.
Huh?
Don't puke here, they'll kick up a fuss.
I can't hold it in. [vomits]
[coughs]
What an asshole!
[Arianna] You're like a three-year-old.
I'm only joking.
Can you believe
he can't hold his drink at 19!?
He's practically a kid.
[Leonardo groans]
God forbid, if I hadn't puked
at the end of the night...
I wouldn't have had fun.
[in English] So, what are you gonna study
here and at which university?
[in English] Um, business
at Brampton University.
That must be so interesting.
Yeah. Yeah, it's cool.
- It's cool.
- [man in Italian] To answer the question
you asked before,
it's going well.
With the tables at Libertine and Maddox,
I've made at least... 3,000 quid.
[in Italian] Yes, Mr. 3,000 Quid,
will you let me and Grazia in on Friday?
- Lele, do you want to come?
- Yes.
If it's you guys, okay, but the guys
mustn't outnumber the girls.
But you can certainly come in.
[Grazia] What's up, Lele?
You're strange, you're quiet.
[Arianna] He's always strange.
[Leonardo] I'm tired.
[Arianna] Giulia says even when
Lele's present, he's not really.
[Leonardo] Whatever.
[raindrops pattering]
[footsteps running]
[door opens]
- [Arianna] Hi.
- Hi.
[door closes]
Don't get up, I'll wash the dishes again.
When do you start uni?
Monday.
Didn't you have open days?
- Yes, but I didn't bother.
- They're helpful!
- They do fuck all!
- That's not true.
They explain the layout of the building,
you meet the staff.
Have you seen where the university is,
at least?
Yes, Zone 4.
And how are you going
to get there every day?
You'll have to move closer.
Are you looking for a place
or facing a three-hour commute?
- I'm looking on the Internet a bit.
- What do you mean "a bit," Lele?
You're so disorganized!
- Did you eat my yogurts?
- Yes, one.
Darn it, why didn't you ask me first?
- You're a pain in the ass.
- No, you're a pain.
If you eat my stuff, I go fucking hungry.
That's all I eat, okay?
Someone left the stove on.
It stunk of gas.
I turned it off after I used it.
I haven't even eaten, so...
- Okay, it's my fault.
- Do you want to blow us up?
I knew I'd get killed
thanks to a classmate!
Do something at least. Clean up.
I found your dirty cotton buds
in the bathroom.
[Arianna] You are so gross!
[footsteps approaching]
- Lele, aren't you coming?
- No.
How the fuck can you stay in
on Friday night?
Come on, we'll wait,
but you'd better hurry up.
Don't call me Lele. It's shitty.
And I'm not coming.
- Okay, bye.
- Bye.
- Bye.
- Bye.
THE BEST ITALIAN UNIVERSITIES
FOR STUDYING LITERATURE.
APPLICATION
REQUEST ENROLLMEN- Hi, sweetie, we're over there.
- Thanks, I have to go.
Oh, so sorry...
Hi, love...
Is the food any good?
[bell tolling]
[mellow music playing]
I spoke to your dad.
I told him there's no Internet.
He said it's not a problem.
You don't have Wi-Fi?
I don't have a lot of data.
There's no Wi-Fi. We're having work done,
but it'll take some time.
If you need to, come to our hotel
next door, we've got Wi-Fi there.
Okay, thanks.
Hello, girls.
- These are your flatmates.
- [Leonardo] Hi.
Shall we go to your room?
This is the room.
The window has a spectacular view.
Your bed. A bathroom with a shower.
You've got my number.
If you need anything,
the hotel's next door.
- Look on Google Maps, Alma Domus.
- Perfect.
[mellow music playing]
PIETRO GIORDANI - EPISTOLARY
- I'm hungry.
- Just a sec. It's coming up.
- I'm starving.
- You never change.
Hi. We didn't introduce ourselves.
- Leonardo.
- Nice to meet you, I'm Serena.
I'm Valentina, hello.
[chuckles]
Sorry, I'm cooking some sauce,
but I won't be long.
- Take your time.
- Thanks, I will then.
I'm making some meat sauce,
do you fancy some?
Thanks, but I'm a vegetarian.
I don't eat meat.
We'll never eat together. I love meat.
- It's true, she's a glutton!
- Let's hope not!
- How do you like Siena?
- I like it a lot.
- You here for university or work?
- University.
University, great!
- I'm studying Literature. You?
- I'm studying Law. Shoot me.
You always exaggerate.
I'm in the fourth year of Medicine.
I bet it's your first year, right?
- Yes, my first year.
- I thought so.
- When do your lectures start?
- Next week.
Such injustice! Only law students
start two weeks before.
Listen to her! I just knew it!
- Have you started already?
- Yes, last Monday.
Ditto.
[Valentina giggles]
Good evening.
- I'm the tenant...
- Wait.
I'm the tenant,
I'm looking for the owner of...
- The apartment...
- What are you saying?
- The man with the bizarre glasses.
- Yes.
Good evening.
He's the student who's staying
in Vicolo del Tiratoio apartment.
- The Wi-Fi details.
- Thanks a lot.
JUSTIN BIEBER PHOTOGRAPHED NAKED
THE SINGER WAS SPOTTED UNCLOTHED
IN BORA BORA
[playing cheerful music]
Shh!
Are you nuts?
- Sorry.
- Do you want to wake all the guests?
- I'm sorry.
- Like hell you are!
Sorry.
[door closes]
[man] "Perhaps in every state
beneath the sun
Or high, or low,
in cradle or in stall
The day of birth is
fatal to us all."
[mellow classical music playing]
- Good morning.
- Good morning.
- Have you got an electric hotplate?
- Yes, I'll get it for you.
- I need a pot and pan too.
- Okay.
Fucking god!
[sniffing]
It fucking stinks!
I can't use it anymore, damn it.
A BREATH OF CORRUPTED AIR
IMBUED EACH OF MY NERVES.
I want to commit suicide.
I want to commit suicide.
I want to commit suicide.
I want to kill myself.
I want to kill myself.
I want to kill myself.
I want to die. I want to die.
I want to die.
I want to croak. I want to croak.
Snuff it.
Pass away.
I want to kill myself.
Okay...
It takes patience.
HEALTH: IS LIMESCALE IN TAP WATER HARMFUL?
SEARCH: ELEMENTS IN WATER
THAT SEEP INTO THE BRAIN
[clattering outside]
[loud clattering]
[playful classical music playing]
[singing in Italian]
PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL
[indistinct chatter]
[woman] Hey...
- What's your name?
- Me?
What's your name?
Leonardo. Leonardo.
Ah, okay.
- And yours?
- Giulia.
Give me your number.
I'll add you to our WhatsApp group.
Okay.
Right, 3-3-4...
- 8-6-7...
- Okay.
- 9-2-6-2.
- I'll add you.
Okay, thanks.
- Good morning.
- [students] Good morning.
Don't get up.
[chatter stops]
[professor] Right, I believe
that it is crucial,
in order to understand Dante's work,
to understand
the relationship between the Divine Comedy
and Vita Nova.
That is, his youthful work,
written between 1292
and 1294...
A work containing both verse and prose.
BETTER A SHOT IN THE HEAD!
Like certain works of art...
Hi, Leonardo. I'm from Siena,
but I can't catch your accent.
- Are you from Turin?
- Turin? No.
No one's ever said that before.
I'm from Palermo.
Ah, okay. I wasn't far out.
Check if I added you to the group chat.
- You did, thanks.
- Have a look, you never know.
Wait a sec.
- Let me see.
- Here.
Okay, I believe you.
I wasn't sure, because
you haven't written anything.
We organize loads of things
if you're interested.
We go out, have fun,
we go for a beer sometimes.
We sometimes go dancing outside Siena.
- We play the guitar and ukulele.
- Really?
Yes, it's fantastic.
- We're a great group.
- All from Siena?
No, I have a friend from Florence,
then two guys from Calabria,
- two from Poggibonsi.
- There's a lot of you!
Yes! One from San Gimignano.
There are lots of us. Too many.
- No...
- And now we have you.
- All right.
- Okay.
I'll see you then. I'm going this way.
What a pity. See you again then, okay?
- See you again.
- I'll see you then. Have a nice day.
In this canto, it would seem that
his main source
was the inscriptions on tombs,
mainly in Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna.
DANTIST OR DENTIST?
Great, it doesn't stink anymore!
[spits]
Oh, no, just something
that stank of toxic plastic.
I'm fucking bored after my third lecture.
His lectures on Dante are awful,
endless mind masturbation that...
Dante was inspired by tombstones and such.
I'm not interested in theories
founded on nothing.
I want to read him,
be amazed, get excited.
He just makes the usual trivial comments
on the most famous cantos of "Inferno"
like Roberto Benigni does.
I swear, for some of the verses
he chooses the most stupid
interpretation, belied by the best.
Why do I have to attend lectures?
If I can spend the time
studying more useful material,
more sophisticated, profound,
beautiful. Why do I bother?
Once, university professors were
Parini, Giambattista Vico, Carducci.
Now we have this wimp,
who's deader than a corpse.
And this is in the top university
for Literature in Italy
according to Censis,
the fucking research institute!
What do I do? I'll finish reading
"Purgatorio" and "Paradiso."
With the interpretations, the good ones...
Then I'll take the exam.
[cell phone buzzes]
HI, LEONARDO, ARE YOU JOINING US LATER?
ASSHOLE, STOP PISSING ME OFF.
HI, I DIDN'T ANSWER BEFORE
AS I WASN'T SURE.
I'M GOING TO ROME TO SEE SOME FRIENDS.
MAYBE NEXT TIME.
DANIELLO BARTOLI
LIFE OF FATHER VINCENZO CARAFA
"She would punish herself
with an iron chain
and the blood would flow
from her flesh onto the ground.
Indeed, it looked as though
an animal had been slaughtered.
The humblest tasks led to
her hands becoming calloused
and she would contemplate them
with pleasure.
And in winter, with the cold,
they would bleed heavily.
When people advised her to use a remedy,
she decided to do so.
But as she yearned to suffer,
she used it to irritate the wounds
rather than heal them.
And she would wash
and rub them with ash and water."
The Dante of Italian prose...
"Fair was he and of gentle aspect.
But a blow had split one of his eyebrows.
When I humbly told him I'd never seen him,
he said, 'Now look' and
showed me a wound on his chest.
Then, smiling, he said, 'I am Manfredi.'"
[cell phone ringing]
Mom?
Leonardo, how are you?
I'm fine.
- How's university going?
- Not bad.
- Have you no lectures today?
- Not today.
- You are attending, aren't you?
- Yes, Mom, holy fuck!
What did you say?
Nothing.
I'm stressed out enough with exams,
then you play the cop.
Why are you so mean to me?
Mom.
I mean...
Wear your shirt for the exam,
or they'll lower your mark.
Jesus Christ!
Okay, goodbye.
Bye.
Talk to me about...
Clear, sweet, fresh water.
Analyze the text from here.
"Grass and flowers which her dress
lightly covered the angelic breast."
That is, the grass pressed on her skirt
seeing she's sitting on the grass.
Um, whereas the flowers fell on her breast
from the branches of the tree.
No.
- What?
- That's not what it means.
Where?
"Ricoverse co' l'angelico seno."
That's what it appears to mean.
- What does "seno" mean?
- Breast.
No, it's the bodice of the dress.
I'll ask you a quick question
about general literature.
- Then we'll go to Dante.
- Yes.
How is Parini's The Day divided up?
The poem is divided
into the young man's day.
Mattino, Meriggio, Vespero and Notte.
Perhaps you mean "Vespro," vespers.
"Vespero" is a different thing altogether.
Now tell me about Dante's sources.
Did you read my book?
Um...
Did you or didn't you?
I didn't know there was a book.
So you didn't attend my lectures?
All right.
Right...
analyze
canto 11 of "Purgatorio."
"In painting Cimabue
thought that he should hold the field,
now Giotto has the cry
so that the other's fame is growing dim.
So has one Guido from the other taken
the glory of our tongue,
and he perchance is born,
who from the nest shall chase them both."
So it starts with the example
in figurative art, painting.
Cimabue thought he was the best painter,
but now, in Dante's day,
Giotto is more famous
and has taken his place,
and Cimabue is almost forgotten.
He gives an example in poetry and speaks
of Guido Guinizzelli and Guido Cavalcanti.
In Dante's day,
Calvalcanti outclasses Guinizzelli.
Then he adds there could be a poet
who dethrones them both.
In short, he speaks of the vanity of fame.
And who was it who
"chased them from the nest"?
He could be talking about himself.
But actually,
some interpreters believe
he can't be talking about himself.
Why not?
Because it would be absurd
that in the canto that punishes pride
Dante himself acts proud.
- And who said that?
- Tommaseo, for example.
He's from 200 years ago!
Yes, yes.
From the mid-19th century.
I see my assistant gave you a 26.
I'll confirm that mark.
Can I refuse the mark?
Yes.
Then I'll refuse it.
Then you can come back next time
and get another 26.
We'll see.
- So you intend to refuse it?
- Yes, please.
Okay.
- Goodbye.
- Goodbye.
Give your daughter a 26, asshole!
VESPRO AND VESPERO:
LATE HOUR TOWARDS EVENING.
They're the same word!
Daniello agrees, you shit!
Castelvetro agrees with me too, dickhead!
Leopardi agrees with me, asshole!
Carducci agrees with me, Christ Almighty!
Even the contemporaries do!
Can you imagine, he didn't know
his "vespero" from his "vespro."
It's fallen out of use,
but it means the same thing.
And he treated me like shit
because I told him
a mid-19th-century Dante scholar
had an opinion on some verses.
They should shoot themselves
through the head.
I'll do something crazy
and get kicked out.
I've written a dialogue against
the professor and his assistant.
I'll print it and leave it
around the university.
- And fuck off.
- [cell phone buzzing]
- Hello?
- Hi, your dad's here too.
- Hi.
- [Mom] Did you take the exam?
- How did it go?
- I got a 28.
- Well done.
- I deserved more.
- [Dad] Then why didn't you get it?
- 'Cause he doesn't understand a thing.
[Dad] Sure, of course,
the professors are always the problem.
First at high school, now university.
You don't think it could be you?
Okay, I'll shut up.
[Dad] I'm starting to have doubts.
[Leonardo] The professor is ignorant.
- Good morning.
- Good morning.
- I'd like to make some copies, please.
- Good.
Goodbye.
[Mom] As long as you took the exam,
forget about the professor.
I can't. I'll be taking other exams
with him, and I don't want to.
[Dad] High school was no good,
same with the university
in London, now here?
[Leonardo] You coerced me
into going to London.
THE PROFESSOR SWEARS TO FOREVER CURE,
WITH HIS LESSONS ON DANTE,
JUVENILE INSOMNIA.
You held me back from studying on my own
with financial, psychological,
and almost physical violence.
[Dad] That's enough of this nonsense.
HE IS NOT WORTH A HANGNAIL
OF A BUTI OR A LANDINO.
[Mom] Is everything else okay?
When's your next exam?
[Leonardo] Everything's fine.
I don't know when the next one is.
- [Mom] Okay.
- [Leonardo] Bye.
THE BOORISH BARKER OF AN ASSISTANIS THERE BECAUSE SHE IS HIS MISTRESS.
[playful music playing]
VIRGIL'S LETTERS AND LITERARY LIFE
[indistinct arguing in distance]
GASPARO GOZZI - IN DEFENSE OF DANTE
WORKS BY FATHER DANIELLO BARTOLI
ISTORIA DELLA COMPAGNIA DI GES, ASIA
WRITTEN BY FATHER DANIELLO BARTOLI
"His legs had been rotting for many years,
they were covered in ulcers and maggots
and were so painful
he couldn't even put
his foot down on the ground.
In the last period of his life,
he suffered from terrible dysentery,
which, in a man like him,
who was almost 60
and already corroded by sores,
was deemed irreparably fatal."
FINISHED READING JANUARY 2015, CAMBRIDGE
GIACOMO LEOPARDI -LETTERS
BUT PERHAPS YOU DO NOT KNOW THAT SO FAR
I HAVE GATHERED FROM MY STUDIES
NO OTHER FRUIT THAN SUFFERING.
FRAILTY OF BODY;
DEEPEST AND EVERLASTING DEPRESSION
OF SPIRITS;
MY TOWNSFOLK'S CONTEMPT AND MOCKERIES.
[woman over phone] Silly!
Carlo Lolli got Lucrezia Passavia
to give him a blindfold blowjob.
Fuck!
Well, Carlo Lolli is an asshole,
he's a bag of piss!
Only 12-year-olds do stuff like that!
Anyway, to me, I think they're...
You don't say "to me, I think."
You can say it, it's just some crap
they told us at primary school.
Leo, I read The Betrothed when I was ten.
Trust me, I know what I'm saying,
and it is wrong.
Okay, but what if I tell you
authoritative writers on language
use it without qualms? Even Manzoni.
No, it's grammatically incorrect,
it's just wrong.
Who says it's wrong?
Is there a grammar god?
Because people
and authoritative language scholars
both use it, so there.
Why should you and primary school
teachers say what is wrong?
Because "to me, I think" is like saying
"I eat I eat", doesn't make sense.
- That's not the same thing at all.
- Don't be so pompous!
- You're right.
- Trust me for once!
You're not the only one who studies!
Anyway, I've sent you a great meme.
Let's see.
SILVIA, RE-MY-MEMBER
Hello?
BLOCK.
BLOCK PAOLA?
HISTORY OF ITALIAN LITERATURE
MARINO OF PROSE WAS DANIELLO BARTOLI
But what have they got in common?
They're as different
as the sun and the moon.
HE WAS IN ALMOSEVERY CORNER OF THE EARTH.
I've got you there!
Everyone knows he never left Italy,
motherfucking ignorant!
You can read it in any preface
from any of his books.
From Marietti on,
even the Neapolitan editions of Asia.
No, I don't want this guy in my bookcase.
And remember, he called Castiglione
mediocre too.
I'll throw it out the window
like Alfieri did with Galateo.
Only I can't change my mind like he did.
I'd hit myself over the head first.
And fancy me reading fashion criticism!
I'll pee on it instead of chucking it.
Fuck you.
YOUR BALANCE
SEXUAL ENCOUNTERS, SIENA
19-YEAR-OLD GUY WITH NO EXPERIENCE
IN STUFF LIKE THIS,
DESCRIBED AS GOOD-LOOKING
BY OTHERS: MERCENARY.
HI, 100 EUROS FOR FULL INTERCOURSE.
CAN YOU SEND A PHOTO?
NO, IF YOU DON'T FANCY ME,
YOU CAN TELL ME WHEN YOU SEE ME.
I WANT 300 FOR PARTIAL INTERCOURSE.
[birds chirping]
Fucking hell!
[birds chirping]
[bells tolling in distance]
What the fuck!
[Valentina] I was carrying the cake
in one hand and the trash in the other.
- Guess which I threw away?
- The cake.
Hi.
- Knife.
- Hm.
Just think what happened
to that poor cake.
[laughing]
[indistinct conversation]
ON THE EVENING OF ST. PETER'S DAY,
MY NAME DAY,
WHILE WE WERE PLAYING MINCHIATE,
THE CARD GAME...
[man] "O bright illusions
of my early years!
Whenever I talk, I come around to you,
for though time passes
and affections and ideas change,
I can't forget you.
Glory and honor
are phantoms,
joys and things mere wishes.
Life, worthless misery, bears no fruit.
Yet sometimes I think back on you,
old hopes of mine..."
[dramatic music playing]
LET'S GO AND GET IT TOGETHER
NOW THEY'VE GOT THE GOOD STUFF
I'LL LEND YOU THE MONEY
I'LL COME WITH YOU
BUT I WON'T HAVE ANY
IT'S BAD
WE'LL GO THERE AND YOU CAN TRY A BIOKAY, LET'S GO
FUCKING WORLD
IT'S GOOD, TRY IOKAY, BUT ONLY A LITTLE
IT WAS GOOD, SEE?
PERHAPS THE MAID PUT SOME LSD
IN THE WATER BOTTLE
SO YOUNG
IT'S NOT FAIR
HI, WE'RE GOING DANCING THE DAY
AFTER TOMORROW. YOU COMING?
"My motherland, beloved,
the life thou gav'st, I render to thee."
Come on, little one, don't worry.
No one's going to hurt you.
Show these fine gentlemen
what you're hiding under there.
Good girl.
Look at this marvel.
A delightful little bottom.
You'll never see a firmer one.
Two titties that would
resuscitate a dying man.
[man] That will do. Next one.
- Mom?
- Leonardo, how are you?
- Fine, and you?
- Fine. What's the weather like?
Nice, it's sunny.
I'm at work. Did you need something?
[inaudible dialogue]
[Leonardo] Um...
- Hello?
- Yeah, sorry.
I wanted to ask you if you
could send me an advance.
What do you need it for?
I bought some books for uni
and now I'm broke.
If I want to go out with friends,
for happy hour, a meal...
Okay, I'll send you something,
but don't waste it.
I don't find money on the ground.
- But all right.
- Yeah, thanks. Bye.
[inaudible dialogue]
- Good evening. You okay?
- Hi. I'm fine.
You're a night owl, aren't you?
I finish studying, then, you know,
some time on the Internet.
Did you do anything nice this weekend?
I went to a party outside Siena,
nothing special.
Well done, we've a little dancer here!
I went to Florence.
I come from Florence, I told you that.
My husband's from Siena, as I told you.
It was sunny and really hot
in Florence, not like here.
I got a suntan. Yes.
Look, you can see the mark.
Hm?
Yes, I can see it.
- Okay, have fun on the Internet.
- Yeah, see you later.
SIENA HIGH SCHOOLS
DUCCIO DI BUONINSEGNA SCHOOL OF ART.
[pensive music playing]
SARROCCHI TECHNICAL COLLEGE
AND HIGH SCHOOL.
What are you talking about, asshole?
I'd have to pretend that he is a girl
and she is a boy,
so then maybe it'll work out... Yeah.
Oh, God, I can't see anymore!
Can you take our picture?
Sure.
Can you take some in black and white?
Yes.
Thanks.
There you go.
You're hot!
Thank you.
[hip-hop music playing]
[hip-hop music continues over tablet]
[music stops]
FAVOURITE SONG AT THE MOMENT?
TEDUA'S LINGERIE
[hip-hop music playing]
[singing in Italian]
I'LL BE WITH YOU SOON, LITTLE BROTHER.
[lively music playing]
Hi. How are things?
Fine.
[doorbell rings]
- Baby!
- Hi.
- Hi, we managed it.
- Yeah, we managed it.
- How are things?
- Fine, and you?
- Fine. Is this the kitchen?
- Yes.
Wow.
And this is the corridor.
Hm.
And my room's there.
- Well, it's not too bad.
- No, it's not bad.
Damn, how many books have you bought?
I had some already.
Hm. How can you afford them?
I buy them for peanuts online, on eBay.
- How much does Mom give you?
- A hundred a week.
- Yeah, 100.
- You don't have to believe me.
Oh. Vernacular version of Acts of
the Apostles, by Fr. Domenico Cavalca,
Dominican friar. Mm, lots of fun!
Lots.
When did you last clean up?
It's covered in dust.
I haven't had much time.
I have to study, go to uni,
attend lectures, etc...
- What's that there?
- What?
- That, the hot plate.
- It's a hot plate.
I don't believe it, but why?
Do you cook in your room?
Why don't you use the kitchen?
Seeing that I cook legumes
that cook for 45 minutes...
I can't hog the kitchen every day,
all day long.
It's disgusting, it's got years
of food stuck to it. At least clean it!
The foam from black rice is a tough enemy.
You're really gross.
Well, then...
- What shall we do?
- What shall we do?
Do I get to meet your friends?
Have you plans?
I'll text them.
- Good.
- Thanks.
POO PISS...
Sent. Shall we go for a walk around Siena?
Of course.
[mellow music playing]
Fucking hell!
- Are you crazy?
- Are you stupid?
What if you fall? I can't stand heights.
No words.
A photo for Instagram.
[inaudible dialogue]
[Arianna] It's so gruesome!
AS YOU ARE NOW, I ONCE WAS.
AS I AM NOW, YOU WILL BE.
Will you massage my hand?
- Done!
- Come on!
Remember what you did as a kid?
- I won't fall for it again, eh?
- [chuckles]
I told you to go first, then when
it was my turn, I pretended to fall sleep.
What a cheek!
You've even the nerve to admit it!
And when I was five and got my first
Christmas and birthday money?
You asked me for it, and I handed it over.
What about it? We used it to buy rabbits.
Or to buy them food.
That was when I was about eight.
[Leonardo] What's wrong?
- You think I was a bad sister?
- I was only joking!
I was joking.
You shouldn't say these things,
you know I'm sensitive.
[Leonardo] Jeez! I'm whacked!
Mm. What did your friends say?
Um...
They suggested something,
but I'm half dead.
- Hm.
- Do you mind if we stay home?
Are you very tired, love?
- Half dead.
- Okay, we'll stay home then.
- But I wanted to meet your friends.
- I know.
But you could have stayed
another day, right?
I know, you're right, it's just...
it's Martina's birthday, you know.
If I don't go, she'll never
forgive me. What can I do?
Yeah.
TRAP IS INGURGITATED AMERICAN PUKE,
RE-PUKED IN HALF-ITALIAN.
DAMAGING FOR SOCIETY.
REMEMBER HOW THE VERSE OF A FOUL SONG
COULD BECOME THE RULE
IN YOUR EARLY ADOLESCENCE.
MUSICIANS BEFORE WERE NO GENTLEMEN.
TAKE THOSE MURDERERS THE BEATLES
AND PINK FLOYD WHO PRAISED DRUGS,
WITH THE AGGRAVATING CIRCUMSTANCE
OF SHOWING OFF
PHONY CULTURE AND INTELLIGENCE.
COMPARE PLATO IN THE REPUBLIC,
SIENESE AND VENETIAN EDITION.
I AM A HOPELESS DESPERATE.
[cell phone ringing]
Hey, who's this?
[chuckles]
I'd love to see you.
MILAN
I have to come outside to smoke
a joint, or the warden complains.
- Even at night?
- Yes, the son of a bitch is always here.
He never sleeps. He's nice,
but he busts your balls over a joint.
I'm so glad you came.
- My cousin from Palermo!
- You know I'm up for anything, right?
Like in Barcelona, they were all wimps.
And we painted the town red.
- When we went out whoring?
- Yeah, and the cleanest had scabies!
- How are things in Siena?
- Siena's beautiful.
I go out sometimes,
go to discos outside Siena.
Some pussy. Then I study.
- No, I don't smoke.
- It's from Barcelona.
You've given it up?
Too much crap hashish from Ballar?
I only drink alcohol now.
Anyway, Lele. Bocconi Uni is great, but...
I'm fucking sick of studying Law.
I've realized it's not my scene.
I'm more interested in... the humanities.
In art, you know.
- Do you still want to be a writer?
- Yes, more or less.
Have you read Pasolini's Corsair Writings?
No.
- It's super interesting.
- I'm not that keen on Pasolini.
- I reckon he writes badly.
- Badly?
He writes bad Italian, that is...
- You can't understand him.
- I understand him.
And he accuses everyone
of being a moralist, as an insult.
Whereas I think that's a good thing.
The 20th century should have
a nice X written across it.
Literature and art were destroyed.
Language study was completely abandoned.
The rhythm and formation of sentences,
a corrupted language.
But language changes over time.
It changes by becoming corrupt.
The Italian language is full
of French and English expressions.
Like in Latin, after Virgil,
Tacitus and Cicero,
we got the corrupt Baroque of
Seneca, Lucan, Statius.
You have erudite tastes?
I bet you like Mozart and Beethoven?
No, actually, Paisiello and Cimarosa.
- Ever heard trap music?
- Yes.
A friend played me some.
I can't make out a fucking word.
There's this place in Siena
where kids of 14 and 15 hang out.
They're completely different
from us at that age.
In the way they dress,
the music they listen to,
their way of thinking.
I thought things would remain
more or less the same.
I never imagined the possibility
of a generational change.
Yes, but it's gross. I have
a 14-year-old cousin who's really...
He's half stupid
and his friends are the same.
They're all fucked up.
All they think about
is money, cars, clothes.
They really have...
something wrong with their brain.
Yes, it's getting worse.
And when it does improve,
it's like when I do drugs.
I feel better at first,
then I am shittier than before.
Come on, let's go.
Ready for The Leopard?
Damn, you're guzzling it down!
How much have you drunk?
All in one go?
All in one go, don't stop!
["Light it Up" playing on radio]
Danger them is
While some call them Major Lazer
This song is cocaine!
May I, mister?
Yeah, I know you're built like that
Gun it like a holster, baby
Show dem say you wicked like that
We live where the war is raging
Chasing our crazy dreams
Hoping that the bridge won't cave in
Tonight we let it all go free
Gimme the ting
And make me rock in a dance
Mash it up, hot step in a dance
Gimme the ting and make me
Rock, rock, rock, rock
Gimme the ting
And make me rock in a dance
Mash it up, hot step in a dance
Gimme the ting and make me
Light it up
["Under Control" playing]
I might be anyone
A lone fool out in the sun
Your heartbeat of solid gold
I love you, you'll never know
When the daylight comes
You feel so cold, you know
I'm too afraid of my heart
To let you go
Waitin' for the fire to light
Feelin' like we could do right
Be the one that makes tonight
'Cause freedom is a lonely road
We're under control
Waitin' for the fire to light
Feelin' like we could do right
Be the one that makes tonight
'Cause freedom is a lonely road
We're under control
We're under control
- [woman] Are you okay?
- [man] Ignore that poor guy.
No way, he's not well.
Hey.
I'm calling an ambulance.
[cousin] Don't you worry,
we'll get him home.
[paramedic] He needs to go to A&E.
We'll take him there
and you can come to the hospital
later if you want. Okay?
Bye.
Motherfuckers!
Fucking hell, now I'll have
to go to the hospital and...
I wanted to go and sleep this off.
Fucking hell!
Shall we get a drink?
[siren wailing]
[silence]
[birds chirping]
[commentator
speaking indistinctly on tablet]
[commentator continues
speaking indistinctly on tablet]
BUT IF I COULD SEE
THE SOUL OF GUIDO, OR ALESSANDRO,
FOR BRANDA'S FOUNI WOULD NOT GIVE THE SIGHT.
[choral music playing]
WORKS BY PIETRO METASTASIO
CATO AT UTICA
[choral music continues]
[opera music playing]
A MONTH LATER
TURIN
A YEAR LATER
[indistinct chatter]
Great film, though. It was awesome.
Photography was a bit like Storaro's, eh?
- Well...
- It was cool.
I was fired up after five minutes.
I came out happy, you know.
Cool.
I'd had enough after a while.
Where's this dinner then?
- On Corso Galileo Ferraris.
- Who invited you?
Dunno, some guy Grandma met somewhere.
She forced me to meet him.
What a fucking bore! This sucks.
- Bound to be a pain in the ass.
- I know.
I'm going home. I have to catch
an early train to Milan tomorrow.
You taking a taxi?
I don't know, I'm heading that way.
- It was great to see you.
- Same here.
- Keep in touch.
- Yeah.
Bye, cuz.
- Good evening.
- [man] Come in.
I'll take that. Thank you.
Thank you.
This way.
- Good evening.
- Hello.
- You are?
- Leonardo Gravina, Antonella's grandson.
You're early.
Sorry.
Leonardo, what are you studying?
Uh, literature.
What kind of literature do you like?
Italian, pre-20th century.
For example?
14th-century Tuscan authors.
Pulci, Segneri, Leopardi...
Foscolo...
Hm, I prefer Monti or Giordani.
When did Giordani live?
Uh, he's Leopardi's contemporary.
What if I mentioned Vittorini,
Fenoglio or Gadda?
No.
Have you heard of them?
- Mm, by name.
- Conservative tastes then.
Where did you get this inclination?
I like how they write, their style.
I wanted to write, and I feel
I learn much more from them.
Back then, the language was different,
and they also taught me a lot...
about morality.
So Gramsci or Pasolini are immoral,
they write badly?
- [clears throat]
- Pasolini...
I find Gramsci's language
and style rather simple.
Ah.
I read some of his Letters from Prison.
Hmm.
What about the psychoanalysts?
Freud, Lacan,
or Fachinelli,
seeing you prefer the Italians.
No.
Listen, is there someone in your family
who shares your taste in literature?
No, they make fun of me, in fact.
Even my grandmother, who's 87.
And she should like anything ancient.
Leonardo, how old are you?
Nineteen. Sorry, twenty last week.
Listen.
The young ISIS terrorists,
suicide bombers,
are between 17 and 23 years old,
sons of immigrants to Europe
who never fit in.
But if one of these had been born in Italy
and was a lover of literature,
I would imagine him to be just like you.
But maybe for some things,
fanaticism can lead us to excellence.
Be careful, be careful of fanaticism
which can lead to stupidity
and fabrication.
Okay, we know well the reasons
ISIS exists.
But who was it that compressed
and crushed you
to this extent?
Uh...
Where did you get this need for morality?
Uh...
Maybe because if I'd had
a more rigid morality,
the kind the authors I read teach us,
I'd have been happier.
I'd have avoided doing certain things,
that turned out to be catastrophic.
I believe humans need restraint.
Be careful, be careful,
because your particular case
does not count as a universal case.
Many people came to a sticky end
for the opposite reason.
And why did you commit
these destructive deeds?
Maybe you should ponder instead
on the system
that incorporated you,
that made you what you are
and made you do those
catastrophic things you talk about, hm?
Okay,
an excessive death instinct
if we wish to psychoanalyze it.
In short, you're a poor wretch.
So my home makes you puke,
design, contemporary art,
20th century.
No, no, I like it, it's very beautiful.
You are very flattering.
Listen, do you like lentils?
Yes, very much so.
Good, I asked them to make
a pumpkin and lentil soup.
Perfect, thank you.
If I'd known what you were like,
I'd have requested a 19th-century recipe.
[mellow music playing]
[music ends]