logo 1980

GIFFONI FILM FESTIVAL 1980 - 26 July.3 August

Sections & Films

IL MATTO

Category: Edition 1980

Synopsis
A man, during the war, when he was still a child, lost the whole family. A trauma that has isolated him from the world pushing him to the margins of society: since then he lives alone in the woods, in contact with nature that is far better than human beings. The first appearance of the "crazy" is through the eyes of some children who do not see it as it is, but as they have heard of him. Soon, however, they discover a human being behind the mask that the madman has forcefully imposed on society. The ghost of what had been described as a monster dissolves and replaces the figure of a solitary man of extraordinary dignity, a generous, instinctive and simple man. His tragedy seems to reawaken in his memory when one day, (he was now very child-friendly and spending a lot of time devoting himself to their games) to save his little friends he did not hesitate to throw himself into the flames that enveloped their home. The madman will perish in the fire but his life and his example have not been useless because the children, who represent the society of the future, have learned from him a lesson that they would not have learned otherwise.

Original Title IL MATTO
Italian Title IL MATTO
Category Official Competition
Festival Awards Special Prize (1980)
Section Official Competition
Tipology Feature Film
Duration 98'
Production Year 1980
Nationality Italy
Directed by Franco Giornelli
Screenplay Franco Giornelli, Henry Sloss
Main cast Franco Giornelli, Fausta Avelli, Michele Marioli

 regista franco giornelliFRANCO GIORNELLI

Franco Giornelli was born on March 7, 1931 in Rome, Lazio, Italy. He is an actor and director, known for Il matto (1980), La battaglia del Sinai (1968) and Tiffany memorandum (1967).