Spettacolo

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Spettacolo

2017,

1h 31m,

Documentary

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93%

28 Reviews

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100%

Popcornmeter

93%

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28 Reviews

100%

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Villagers in a tiny Tuscan town come up with a remarkable way to confront their issues: they turn their lives into a play. Every summer, their piazza becomes a stage and residents of all ages play a part -- the role of themselves. Monticchiello's annual tradition has attracted worldwide attention and kept the town together for 50 years, but with an aging population and a future generation more interested in Facebook than farming, the town's 50th anniversary performance might be its last.

Peter Howell

Toronto Star

Feb 8, 2018

2.5/4

Spettacolo serves as a hymn to the creative process, but also as a eulogy of sorts to the let's-put-on-a-show spirit of pre-digital times. Come for the drama, stay for the gorgeous scenery.

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Gary Goldstein

Los Angeles Times

Sep 28, 2017

An engaging and wistful look at the tiny Tuscan village of Monticchielo and its longtime tradition of producing "autodramas," works crafted by, starring and thematically inspired by its residents.

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Mark Jenkins

NPR

Sep 8, 2017

[An] engaging documentary ...

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Alex Dueben

Film Threat

Oct 14, 2026

4.5/5

...this is a documentary about a very specific place and a specific group of people, but like the best films, the best art, it reminds us of ourselves.

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Nathan Mattise

Ars Technica

Jul 28, 2021

Spettacolo hit home.

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Paul D'Agostino

Hyperallergic

Feb 8, 2020

Moving, maddening, heroic, tragic, enlightening, revelatory, timely and steeped in time, sad yet bursting with mirth, Spettacolo is without doubt, in many ways and on many levels, consummate spectacle.

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Jeff Malmberg

Director

Chris Shellen

Director

Jeff Malmberg

Producer

Matt Radecki

Producer

Chris Shellen

Producer

Lele Marchitelli

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Spettacolo: Trailer 1

2:16

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Synopsis

Villagers in a tiny Tuscan town come up with a remarkable way to confront their issues: they turn their lives into a play. Every summer, their piazza becomes a stage and residents of all ages play a part -- the role of themselves. Monticchiello's annual tradition has attracted worldwide attention and kept the town together for 50 years, but with an aging population and a future generation more interested in Facebook than farming, the town's 50th anniversary performance might be its last.

Director: Jeff Malmberg, Chris Shellen
Producer: Jeff Malmberg, Matt Radecki, Chris Shellen
Distributor: Grasshopper Film
Production Co: Open Face
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: Italian
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 6, 2017, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 22, 2018
Runtime: 1h 31m

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