‘Fuori' Review: Valeria Golino Exudes Humanity In Mario Martone's Refreshing Biopic Of A Struggling Literary Pioneer
Sapienza is played by Valeria Golino, who recently directed a six-part adaptation of the author's posthumous hit bestseller The Art of Joy, a novel Sapienza finished in 1976 and which remained unpublished until 1998. When we meet her, the year is 1980 and her manuscript has been rejected by every major publisher in town. Things are bad, so much so that she has been reduced to stealing, and the theft of some expensive jewelry from a wealthy socialite sees her spending some quality time in prison. Her motives for that, however, remain murky; although Sapienza is clearly in need of money, there is also a mischievous side to her beliefs that suggest an unapologetically radical-left dimension to the crime (the title card says that she was capable of cultivating 'love and furore' equally).
More from Deadline
Mario Martone's 'Fuori' With Valeria Golino Gets 7½-Minute Ovation At Cannes Premiere
Cannes Film Festival 2025: Read All Of Deadline's Movie Reviews
'Romería' Review: Carla Simón Takes The Scenic Route For A Highly Personal Journey Of Self-Discovery - Cannes Film Festival
Although her induction into prison is a humiliating, dehumanizing experience ('Are you wearing a wig?' asks a warden, tugging her hair and demanding she strip), Sapienza doesn't seem overly traumatized, holding her own within the hierarchies that exist behind bars and even getting her hands dirty in a fist fight. She becomes friends with one young girl in particular — Roberta (Matila De Angelis) — a seemingly hardened career criminal who becomes a big part of Sapienza's life, a tight friendship that, over time, will become more of a fractious, mother-daughter surrogacy.
RELATED: CANNES HUB / Photos; Johnson, Hargitay, Stewart & More In Cannes Studio; 'Alpha' Review
The title of the film translates into English as Out, and although the film shows Sapienza on both sides of the bars, the overriding theme of the film is freedom. Sapienza becomes fascinated by the women of Rome's Rebibbia prison, in particular the remarkable way that Roberta, in particular, seems to swim through life from one reality to another. The prison scenes are the most interesting, and Martone builds up a very textured analysis of the types of women doing time, and the types of crime that send them there. Drugs are a given, and Roberta has built up a pretty serious junk habit, but, this being Italy, the radical left is at its height, and many women have connections to the Brigate Rosse, one of the many outlaw European outfits of the time carrying out robberies, kidnappings and sabotage.
RELATED: Dakota Johnson Talks Romantic Experiments In Cannes Comedy 'Splitsville', Upcoming 'Materialists' And 'Juicy' Colleen Hoover Adaptation 'Verity'
Golino exudes humanity and patience, but there's an edge to her relationships that does border on the exploitative, which, inevitably, makes for tension with Roberta. But the overriding sense is not that Sapienza is fetishizing these women in the way the French bourgeoisie once went nuts for Jean Genet; it's more that she finds their stamina, their drive, their autonomy inspiring.
The ending, then, is a little disappointing, since it involves a little twist that, if she really was paying so much close attention, Sapienza would have seen coming. Nevertheless, the film's central premise is refreshing; most literary biopics are about how a writer's most famous work came into being (Naked Lunch and Howl spring immediately to mind). Fuori, though, is about the opposite, concerning a woman who's already done that, now looking to make peace with her disappointments and learning to live freely in her own skin.
Title: FuoriFestival: Cannes (Competition)Director: Mario MartoneScreenwriters: Ippolita Di Majo, Mario MartoneCast: Valeria Golino, Matilda De Angelis, Elodie, Corrado FortunaSales agent: GoodfellasRunning time: 1 hr 55 mins
Best of Deadline
Broadway's 2024-2025 Season: All Of Deadline's Reviews
Sundance Film Festival U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize Winners Through The Years
Deadline Studio At Sundance Film Festival Photo Gallery: Dylan O'Brien, Ayo Edebiri, Jennifer Lopez, Lily Gladstone, Benedict Cumberbatch & More
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Netflix revives William Shatner's classic cop drama 'T. J. Hooker' as a movie
Look out, criminal scum! Attention, criminal scum! Your days are numbered, because Los Angeles County's toughest uniformed officer is about to walk the beat again. Entertainment Weekly has confirmed that Netflix is developing an action-comedy film based on T. J. Hooker, the classic TV crime drama starring William Shatner as the titular cop. (Deadline first reported the news.) The movie adaptation is being written by Jarrad Paul and Andy Mogel. Hooker premiered on ABC in 1982, where it ran for three seasons before moving to CBS for one more season. Shatner starred as former plainclothes detective T.J. Hooker, who decides to return to uniformed police work after his partner is killed in the line of duty. Working alongside newer officers Stacy Sheridan (Heather Locklear), Vince Romano (Adrian Zmed), and Jim Corrigan (James Darren), Hooker dedicates himself to ridding the streets of Los Angeles of dangerous criminals, one collar at a time. No word yet whether Shatner, now 94, will appear in the Netflix film. (EW has reached out to Shatner's representative for comment.) Throughout its four-year run, T.J. Hooker mixed cop-show drama — drug pushers! teen prostitutes! serial killers! — with flashy stunt casting. Guest stars included Carl Wilson of the Beach Boys, legendary piano man Jerry Lee Lewis, and even Shatner's longtime Star Trek co-star Leonard Paul and Mogel — who created Rob Lowe's woefully short-lived Fox comedy The Grinder — should have no trouble transforming T. J. Hooker into an action-comedy, because the show itself was often hilarious... even if unintentionally. For example, please check out Hooker's sick baton skills: Thanks to its melodramatic storylines and Shatner's over-the-top performance, T. J. Hooker became a pop culture punchline — though Shatner maintained a sense of humor about the show. In 1986, the year Hooker went off the air, the actor reprised the character in a sketch while hosting Saturday Night Live. Though Shatner has not spoken publicly about the Hooker reboot, the actor is not opposed to revisiting his most famous roles. Last year, he told a Canadian outlet that he'd be open to returning to Star Trek if the role was "well-written." Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
‘Kpop Demon Hunters' Stars Arden Cho, May Hong & Ji-young Yoo On Portraying 'Vulnerable Girls Who Also Kick Ass'
It's only up, up, up from here for Netflix's latest surprise hit Kpop Demon Hunters. The critically acclaimed feature danced its way to history with the distinction of becoming the streamer's most-watched animated film ever. The film also snagged the number four spot on Netflix's most popular English-language films list with over 158 million views since its release. Co-written and co-directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, Kpop Demon Hunters follows Rumi (Arden Cho), Mira (May Hong) and Zoey (Ji-young Yoo), three young-adult popstars in a group called Huntr/x, who are tasked to deal with supernatural threats because of their ancient demon slayer lineage. However, when their biggest demonic enemy (Lee Byung-hun) encourages the formation of an equally popular K-pop boy band aimed at stealing the souls of their fans, the trio has to fight harder than ever to hold the demons at bay while keeping their friendship intact. More from Deadline Netflix Scores Canadian Rights To FIFA Women's World Cup For Next Two Tournaments Jack Champion Joins Netflix Comedy 'Don't Say Good Luck' Michael Bay & Will Smith Part Company On Netflix Action Film 'Fast And Loose' 'I expected [the movie] to be really awesome and fun, but I did not expect it to be at the level that it is at right now,' Hong told Deadline. 'I didn't think it would be a complete phenomenon, a global sensation, or top of the charts.' 'The writers are perfect,' Cho added. 'Maggie and Chris are perfect.' A secret to the magic sauce could be the way that audiences are personally resonating with each member of the group as they battle with the fear of perception, insecurities and the nuances of love. 'In terms of it resonating with everyone with their familial trauma and expectations to uphold—I think there's a really good lesson [in the film]. I think it's about being honest with yourself and the ones you love—and also pushing boundaries if you feel that it's not working for you.' Hong said. Yoo also felt she could relate to her character's struggle. In the film, Zoey is the only member of the group born and raised in America. It's a disorienting experience that she pens within the verses of the film's hit songs. 'Maggie and Chris really did their thing with casting, in addition to also letting us bring a lot of ourselves to the characters, which is wonderful,' Yoo said. 'I think I share a lot in common with Zoey—one of the obvious ones being that we're both Korean American. I think Zoey is still in the process of trying to figure out where she fits in the diaspora. She holds both ends of her heritage. I don't know if I share that [feeling] anymore, but it was certainly something I thought about a lot when I was younger. Something I wish I shared with Zoey, which I do think I do, is her optimism and her inability to give up. It takes her longer to give in to the demon voices because she's such a deep optimist, and I find that very admirable.' As for Cho? She relates to the themes about vulnerability and breaking boundaries presented in Huntr/x's power anthem 'Golden.' And as it turns out, so does the rest of the film's rapidly growing fanbase. In addition to being a catchy smash-hit in the fictional world of the movie, the song—written by Korean singer-songwriter Ejae and performed by Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami, who also lend their vocals to the trio in Kpop Demon Hunters—has also transcended into reality-breaking records. As it stands currently, the film boasts the highest-charting soundtrack of 2025 on the Billboard 200 and is the #1 movie soundtrack on Spotify. Additionally, it is the first K-pop album to top the U.S. Apple Music chart and iTunes simultaneously. 'Golden' is one of several tracks charting individually on the Billboard Global 200 but has the distinction of holding a spot at #1 for non-consecutive weeks on both Billboard Global 200 and Billboard Global Excl. U.S. But why is that? What does Cho think people are reacting to within the lyrics of the song? She relates it to her own career trajectory as an actress of color in Hollywood. '[Being] an actor is already a difficult path. It's already something that is very competitive and a battle,' Cho said. 'But at the same time, I think being an active Asian American, sometimes everything we do ends up becoming about our race. It's almost like I'm not trying to do a project as an Asian American or as an Asian, but people make it that, right? Even with something like Kpop Demon Hunters, I feel like the love and response has been so refreshing and fun because it's not really about our characters being Korean or Korean American, which they are. We are so unapologetic about it, and we love our culture. But I love that it's such a fun movie that's being celebrated for how great it is.' Cho continued, 'The story is great, everything is there—the action, fun, comedy, romance, the thrill and the human aspect of it. I feel, as Asian Americans, or at least for myself, that it's always a struggle to find a role where I'm like, this character is very three-dimensional in going through something real and battling something. But also telling their story in a way where it's not necessarily about just their skin color or who they are or those kinds of things. As an actor, we're always feeling really hungry for something real. And I feel like this movie is just so fun to be these vulnerable girls who also kick ass.' You can check out more of the interview and behind the scenes fun in the videos below. Best of Deadline Everything We Know About Lady Gaga's 'Wednesday' Season 2 Role So Far 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery 2025 TV Cancellations: Photo Gallery
Forbes
4 hours ago
- Forbes
‘Weapons' Beats ‘Sinners' And ‘Final Destination Bloodlines' First Day Gross
'Weapons,' the buzzy new horror film from director Zach Cregger, made $5.7 million in Thursday night previews ahead of its opening Friday, a strong total surpassing the Thursday preview totals of this year's highest-grossing horror movies, 'Sinners' and 'Final Destination Bloodlines.' Zach Cregger, who previously directed "Barbarian," wrote and directed "Weapons." (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP) (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images 'Weapons' grossed $5.7 million in its first day Thursday to best its box office rival, 'Freakier Friday,' which also opens this weekend and grossed $3.1 million on Thursday, Deadline and Variety reported. The strong opening for 'Weapons' follows excellent reviews—for weeks, the film had a perfect 100% Rotten Tomatoes score, but it has since slipped slightly to 96% from 167 reviews—and a viral marketing campaign. 'Weapons' may be on track to become one of this year's biggest horror hits, as its Thursday total was bigger than the $4.7 million earned by 'Sinners' in its Thursday previews and the $5.5 million grossed by 'Final Destination Bloodlines,' which are this year's two highest-grossing horror movies. The only horror movie to have surpassed 'Weapons' in Thursday previews gross this year is '28 Years Later,' which barely edged it out with $5.8 million, but that movie fizzled quickly at the box office. Whether 'Weapons' can fend off 'Freakier Friday' to top this weekend's box office. Though 'Weapons' has the early edge based on Thursday previews, Deadline reported horror movies tend to be front-loaded at the box office. Both movies are expected to gross around $30 million this weekend, but Deadline reported 'Weapons' is 'pulling ahead with at least a low-to-mid $30M take or even more.' Surprising Fact Some theaters have scheduled screenings of 'Weapons' for 2:17 p.m., a reference to the time in the film, 2:17 a.m., when a classroom full of children mysteriously disappear. 'Sinners' is the highest-grossing horror movie of 2025 so far, far surpassing expectations to gross $365 million worldwide. 'Sinners,' a vampire film directed by Ryan Coogler from his original script, reportedly benefitted from a near-perfect 97% score on Rotten Tomatoes and word-of-mouth recommendations, which helped it nearly double box office projections for both its opening weekend and its second weekend. 'Final Destination Bloodlines,' the sixth film in the 'Final Destination' franchise, has grossed $285 million at the box office, likely helped by franchise name recognition and strong reviews, with a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes. '28 Years Later,' despite a strong opening, made $150 million worldwide at the box office after failing to sustain momentum, dropping almost 70% between its first and second weekends. Key Background 'Weapons' went viral ahead of its release for its marketing campaign, which drew comparisons to horror hit 'The Blair Witch Project' for using found footage and making the marketing materials—like faux news articles about the movie's missing children—seem real. In April, Warner Bros. published a video of surveillance footage on YouTube, titled '2025_░_░_06: which portrays children running through town in the middle of the night. The studio also made a website, resembling a real local news outlet covering the movie's fictional town. Further Reading Horror Movie 'Weapons' Earns Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score After Viral Marketing Campaign (Forbes) 'Weapons' Hits $5.7M, 'Freakier Friday' $3M+ In Previews – Box Office (Deadline)
