Forever young

Directed by Director's notes
  • Fausto Brizzi
Directed by
  • Fausto Brizzi
Year
  • 2016
Length
  • 95 min.
Year
  • 2016
Length
  • 95 min.
Cast
  • Teo Teocoli
  • Sabrina Ferilli
  • Lorenza Indovina
  • Lillo Petrolo
  • Fabrizio Bentivoglio
  • Stefano Fresi
  • Luisa Ranieri
Synopsis

Today, no one chases a dream, an ideal, or simply money anymore; everyone is searching for lost youth. If you’re young, you’re “in”; if you’re old, you’re “out.”

This is the story of a group of “Forever Young” friends, set in present-day Italy. The lawyer FRANCO (Teo Teocoli) is an adrenaline-fueled seventy-year-old, a passionate sports enthusiast, particularly marathon running. His life changes when he discovers he’s about to become a grandfather thanks to his daughter MARTA (Claudia Zanella) and his son-in-law LORENZO (Stefano Fresi), and that his body isn’t as indestructible as he thought. ANGELA (Sabrina Ferilli), a 49-year-old beautician, is having a love affair with LUCA (Emanuel Caserio), 20 years old, a relationship opposed by his mother, SONIA (Luisa Ranieri), who is also Angela’s friend. DIEGO (Lillo), a top-rated middle-aged radio DJ, has to come to terms with the passing years and a new, very young and fierce rival (Francesco Sole). GIORGIO (Fabrizio Bentivoglio) is 50 years old and has a very young partner (Pilar Fogliati), but he cheats on her with a woman his own age, 50 (Lorenza Indovina). Who will he choose when he’s cornered?

Director's notes
  • This time, I just had to look around: the “Forever Young” are everywhere. Adults barely exist anymore; there are the young and the “fake young.” This era will be remembered for the extinction of grandparents, aunts, uncles, mothers, and fathers. Or at least for their transformation.

    My grandmother would have adopted me; today, my daughter's grandmother goes to Pilates on Monday, yoga on Tuesday, the cinema with friends on Wednesday because it's cheaper, on Thursday she watches a TV series with her second husband, on Friday she goes to dinner with a man who is courting her, on Saturday she organizes a brunch, and on Sunday maybe she'll watch my child for a couple of hours. Maybe. Belonging to the category of the fake young (the aggravating factor is that in Italy you remain a "young director" almost forever), I can afford to make fun of her. And I can also avoid necessarily seeking a happy ending, as I often did in previous romantic fairy tales. This is my first film of social satire, I would almost call it a commedia all'italiana if the term weren't so overused. Certainly, I say this quietly and without wanting to draw comparisons, I had Risi's "Mostri" and "Il sorpasso" in mind when I was writing with Martani and Falcone. The "Forever Young" are irredeemable, willing to do anything; they lurk in sports clubs, discos, and shopping centers. You recognize them easily: they are dressed and behave like young people. And then there are the young. The film is full of real young people. In fact, I believe that the main audience for the film will be the children of these "Monsters" who will finally be able to laugh at their parents. I could have titled it "YOUNG versus FAKE YOUNG" if I hadn't already overused conflict in some previous titles. And then "Forever Young" for my generation is an immediately evocative logo. Here, the Alphaville hit is regenerated by Nina Zilli, who sang a rarefied and, in my opinion, very modern version. I tried to make a colorful, funny film, full of characters and songs (a bit vintage and a bit contemporary) and to play with a cast new to me, even somewhat out of sync with the standardized casts I've contributed to in the past. It's the first film since "EX" that I feel entirely mine, in which I fully recognize myself and which is not the result of compromises or winks at the market. It's what I can do today. It's what I am today. As a director and as a fake young person.
Directed by
  • Fausto Brizzi
Story and screenplay
  • Fausto Brizzi
  • Marco Martani
  • Edoardo Falcone
Produced by
  • Wildside
In association with
  • Crédit Agricole Vita S.p.a.
  • Imprebanca S.p.a.
In collaboration with
  • Mediaset Premium
Editing
  • Luciana Pandolfelli
Scenography
  • Stilde Ambruzzi
Director of photography
  • Marcello Montarsi
Costumes
  • Elena Minesso
Music
  • Bruno Zambrini
Sound
  • Gaetano Carito
Casting
  • Francesco Vedovati
With the support of
  • Regione Lazio
Distributed by
  • Medusa
Director's notes
X

This time, I just had to look around: the “Forever Young” are everywhere. Adults barely exist anymore; there are the young and the “fake young.” This era will be remembered for the extinction of grandparents, aunts, uncles, mothers, and fathers. Or at least for their transformation.

My grandmother would have adopted me; today, my daughter's grandmother goes to Pilates on Monday, yoga on Tuesday, the cinema with friends on Wednesday because it's cheaper, on Thursday she watches a TV series with her second husband, on Friday she goes to dinner with a man who is courting her, on Saturday she organizes a brunch, and on Sunday maybe she'll watch my child for a couple of hours. Maybe. Belonging to the category of the fake young (the aggravating factor is that in Italy you remain a "young director" almost forever), I can afford to make fun of her. And I can also avoid necessarily seeking a happy ending, as I often did in previous romantic fairy tales. This is my first film of social satire, I would almost call it a commedia all'italiana if the term weren't so overused. Certainly, I say this quietly and without wanting to draw comparisons, I had Risi's "Mostri" and "Il sorpasso" in mind when I was writing with Martani and Falcone. The "Forever Young" are irredeemable, willing to do anything; they lurk in sports clubs, discos, and shopping centers. You recognize them easily: they are dressed and behave like young people. And then there are the young. The film is full of real young people. In fact, I believe that the main audience for the film will be the children of these "Monsters" who will finally be able to laugh at their parents. I could have titled it "YOUNG versus FAKE YOUNG" if I hadn't already overused conflict in some previous titles. And then "Forever Young" for my generation is an immediately evocative logo. Here, the Alphaville hit is regenerated by Nina Zilli, who sang a rarefied and, in my opinion, very modern version. I tried to make a colorful, funny film, full of characters and songs (a bit vintage and a bit contemporary) and to play with a cast new to me, even somewhat out of sync with the standardized casts I've contributed to in the past. It's the first film since "EX" that I feel entirely mine, in which I fully recognize myself and which is not the result of compromises or winks at the market. It's what I can do today. It's what I am today. As a director and as a fake young person.