Lost In Translation

In Flight Films (Italian Version)

There was a lot of time spent in the air for this trip and I saw several films, many of which I found interesting and intriguing. Most of the recent films available were ones that I had already seen (Enough Said, Blue Jasmine, etc.) or films that I wasn't interested in seeing (Rush, Whitehouse Down, etc.). However, there were several retrospectives of previously released and foreign films available.  (Unfortunately there were two older Vittorio Di Sica films without English subtitles (including The Last Judgement with Sophia Loren) that I would have liked to have seen.

However, I did watch an entertaining Italian comedy film noir, Noturno Bus (2007). It reminded me of the 1985 film Into The Night starring Jeff Goldblum and Michele Pfieffer. In this film a loser at love, poker, crosses paths with a seductress/manipulator and is convinced to take part in her double crossing scams while falling in love with the femme fatale. I was also intrigued by Yasuo Fuhata's A Boy Called H (2013) a Japanese film about a Protestant Christian taior's family's experiences throughout the imperialistic surge and subsequent American occupation as seen through the eyes of the young son, "H" (Hajime). The child actors were quite compelling and it is an interesting story of survival and preservation among what many saw as mass hysteria. The there was the compelling coming of age story, My Week With Marilyn (2011) about Marilyn Monroe's (played with aplomb by Michele Williams) ill-fated film collaboration with Laurnece Olivie (Kenneth Branagh) during production of The Prince and the Showgirl in England based on the memoir by Colin Clark, an employee of the production.

I was also surprised to find that I was entertained by a couple of big budget prestige films: Gore Verenski's 2013 big budget action film The Lone Ranger (starring Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer) as well as Tom Hopper's Oscar bait of 2010 The King's Speech with strong performances from Colin Firth and Geoffrey Rush.

I re-watched the Coen brothers stellar 1998 comedy noir and cult classic, The Big Lebowski with Jeff Birdges's career defining role (probably the most fun I had on the plane). I also re-watched the mediocre 2008 James Bond film Quantum of Solace since the opening sequence was filmed in Italy's medieval masterpiece Siena among other stunning locations.

Milan

Central Station Milan.

In the city.

Arco della Pace.

Sempione Park.

Castle Sforzesco.

On the way to the Duomo.

The Dumon in all it's glory.

Galleria Vittoria Emanuaele II.

No visit to the Duomo would be complete without a climb to the top.

The view from up top.

Inside the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.

Take the cannoli.

Near Porta Venezia metro station and a shopping mecca.

At night near the Arc Della Pace in front of Parco Sempione.

Navy blue suede shoes, it wouldn't be proper to travel to Italy and not get something stylish.

In Sempione park again.

Castiglioni Palace.

Villa Neechi Campiglio grounds.

Milan Natural History Museum in Gardini Public Park.

Padigilone D'Arte Contemporanes.

Piero Manzoni (1933-1963) on display at the Museo del Novecento in Plazza dell'Arengario.

Turin: Part Two

A walk along Via Roma.

 

Piazza Republic, at the central market.

Inside the Cathedral of St. Jon the Baptist, but no photos of "The Shroud of Turin"-strickly forbidden.

On the top of the Plaza Madama.

I really enjoyed the photos in the Eve Arnold, American photographer exhibit and would like to see more of her work. She had photos from the Harlem renaissance, celebrities, and travel photos from places like Afghanistan and China.

The back of the Museo nationale del Risorgimento.

The main entrance.

Park and Castle Valentino.

Eating and Drinking in Turin

A late lunch at a deli with an Italian craft beer to go along.

One of the many cafes on Via Po.

Cappachino and cheese cake.

Ravioli and a Spritz at Piola cafe.

The Garbaldi Cafe, named after the republican hero of Italian reunificaiton.

Modern Italian restaurant E Cucina has a set lunch with water, wine, an appetizer, a first plate, dessert and coffee for only 10 euros.

Pasta with pancetta pork, asparagus and cream mozzerella.

 

Parola, the bar where I had my first vermouth this night, (Turin is the city that first created vermouth-this drink was a Martini).

Roar Roads polenta Alla Voidotane (Polenta with ham and cheese), not bad.

Blah Blah Club, the music is anything but blah blah.

Turin: Part One

My centrally located hotel, the Chelsea Hotel.

In Piazza Castello.

Mole Antonelliana.

Three films I showed in my Japanes Cinema class: Rashomon, Hana-Bi, and Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, ithe Cinema Museum inside the Mole Antonelliana.

The view from the observation deck on the top of the Mole Antonelliana.

Ponte Emmanuele I.

Chisea Santa Maria al Monte.

Duomo di San Giovanni (it displays the Shroud of Turin).

Amacrod

Federico Fellini's Amarcord (1973) is both a satire and love letter to his past growing up in a small seaside village during the height of the fascist regime. Amarcord is said to mean "I remember." In this case, it may be more of a memory of the spirit of his youth, rather than an actual representation of it in cinematic terms. It won a Best Foreign Film Oscar in 1974. It is a film made up of vignettes that take place over the course of a year and features several recurring Fellini character types the have been seen in his previous films. There is an overwhelming amount of insults, sexual and bathroom humor, as well as slapstick comedy throughout.

Biella

I'm in Biella, Piedmont visiting my friend Lara, taking in the mountain village life.

Me and Filippo at the Aussie bar.

Venice: Part Three

San Giamcometto at night.

The Bridge of Sighs.

 

The Moorish clock in San Marco square.

Inside the Doge's Palace.

American style coffee and a cupcake.

Last dinner at Sapor Venexiani, risotto with aspargus and scampi.

Leaving for Biella in the rain.

Osteria Bancogiro

I found Osteria Bancogiro in the San Giamcometto area drinking and eating cicetti and saw the menu and decided to go back for lunch.

 

Swordfish, funa, and scampi with a wasabi yogurt sauce, just like sashimi.

Smoked seabass baked in foil with clams, pesto basil and lemon.

Venice: Part Two

I walked the Lonely Planet suggested walking tour, Venice Labyrinth starting from Plaza San Marco and ending in Campo San Giancomo Dell'Orio.

Pescaria, the seafood market.

On my way to dell'Accademia.

The Peggy Guggenheim Museum.

Gallerie Accademia.

Ca' Rezzonio.