07/11/2005

From the beginning of his career, Giacomo Campiotti [Corsa di primavera, 1989; Like Two Crocodiles (o.t. Come due coccodrilli, 1994; and A Time to Love (o.t. Il tempo dell'amore, 1999] has been attentive to the movements of the heart and soul, especially when they are tied to childhood and adolescence. After recent television projects - the mini-series Doctor Zhivago and film La guerra sulle montagne - Campiotti has returned to cinema with a story he wrote with Alexander Adabachian, the Russian screenwriter of his two last features, as well as a regular collaborator of Nikita Michalkov’s.

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Mai + come prima, which will be distributed this coming Friday by Medusa Film, tells the story of a group of teenagers who, upon graduating from high school, find themselves having to face their futures. They must choose whether to follow their own dreams or comply with the wishes of their parents and society’s standards. A short vacation spent together, which puts them in touch with the majestic and powerful nature of the Dolomites, will serve as the watershed between adolescence and adulthood, with the discovery of the energy they everyone contains though often forgets they possess. The six young people, who aptly represent diverse social types, also include Max, a differently abled boy (in real life as well) who will grow up regardless of his handicap.

Written three years ago, Mai + come prima (whose original title was I guerrieri della luce) suffered a beleaguered birth. After a number of producers refused to finance it because it offered no guarantee of known actors in its main roles, it received governmental aid yet remained blocked for a year when state funds were frozen, until Medusa came to its rescue.