This is not a rom-com: Italiensk for Begyndere (open-air film)

This is not a rom-com

De Nijverheid and cinema-out-of-place Opgedoekt present two films under the stars that offer a light-hearted counterpoint: against cheesy Hollywood clichés, against megalomaniac productions that place genre traditions above humanity. Films that sometimes appear to be romantic comedies, but deliberately are not - or perhaps just a little bit are.

Italiensk for Begyndere
Lone Scherfig, Denmark/Sweden (2000), 94 minutes, Danish spoken, English subtitled

A recently widowed vicar, a lonely hairdresser, a baker's daughter with a difficult father, a shy hotel clerk and a bartender with behavioural problems - they are all as gloomy as the Danish suburb where they meet at a beginner's Italian course. Lone Scherfig, better known for An Education, made this ensemble comedy according to the Dogma95 manifesto: handheld camera, natural light, no special effects, no props brought from outside, all music recorded on location. These rigid purity rules served as fertile ground for wild scenes in earlier Dogma films - Festen by Thomas Vinterberg won an Oscar for it, Idioterne by Lars von Trier gained fame with over-the-top scenes. Italiensk for Begyndere is considerably friendlier and is about people you could encounter anywhere: on the bus, in a restaurant, at church, or at an Italian course.

Live performance

After the film, ex-Nijverheid resident Charlotte Puebla Coenen performs a piece that connects to the film's theme.

Cinema Season

This screening is part of the Cinema Season at De Nijverheid:

Wed 23/09 | Simple comme Silvain - about class differences and the complexity of love and desire, with a nod to the rom-com genre
Thu 24/09 | Italiensk for Begyndere
Fri 01/10 | Interdisciplinary Shorts Night - three short films with three live performances by students from HKU Utrecht Conservatory