"ITALIAN CINEMA: A NEW GENERATION" - FILMS & DISCUSSIONS HOSTED BY NYU'S CASA ITALIANA ZERILLI-MARIMÒ, DEC. 4-8

Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò at New York University will present "Italian Cinema: A New Generation," films by five of Italy's most original, up-and-coming directors, during the week of December 4-8. Of special interest is the New York premiere of the film Tano da Morire on Wednesday, December 6; the film is a surrealistic "Mafia musical" which was a smash hit in Italy (and also a controversial one). This screening will be followed by a discussion with the director Roberta Torre.

The screenings and discussions which follow some of the films are co-sponsored by the NYU Department of Italian Studies, the NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Cinema Italia, and Cinecittà International. All films are in Italian with English subtitles. For further information the public may call (212) 998-8739.

A list of films, dates and locations of the screenings follow:

· Lontano in fondo agli occhi ("Pictures Deep in One's Eyes) by Giuseppe Rocca. At NYU's Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò, 24 W. 12th Street, Monday, December 4, 6 p.m. In an impoverished Italy in 1954, at Christmastime in Naples, in a family dominated by females and a priest, a child anxiously awaits the return of his father.

· Gostanza da Libbiano ("Gostanza from Libbiano") by Paolo Benvenuti. At NYU's Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò, 24 W. 12th Street, Tuesday, December 5, 6 p.m. In 1594, Gostanza da Libbiano, an elderly Tuscan peasant woman, is arrested and falsely accused of witchcraft.

· Tano da morire ("Tano, to Die For") by Roberta Torre. At NYU's Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò, 24 W. 12th Street, Wednesday, December 6, 6 p.m. Followed by a roundtable discussion with the film's director Roberta Torre; Millicent Marcus, University of Pennsylvania; Mary Cappello, University of Rhode Island; Antonio Monda, Tisch School of the Arts; and Stefano Albertini, director, Casa Italiana Zerilli-Marimò. The legend of Tano Guarrasi, a local Mafioso, whose jealous care of his four sisters, continues even after he dies.

· Tre Storie ("Three Stories") by Piergiorgio Gay and Roberto San Pietro. At NYU Cantor Film Center, 36 E. 8th Street, Thursday, December 7, 6 p.m. Followed by a conversation with Piergiorgio Gay. Paolo decides to join a community for drug addicts and joins his friend Wolf who has entered the community to escape prison. The film tells their story and those of others in the community.

· La bella vita ("Living It Up") by Paolo Virzì. At NYU Cantor Film Center, 36 E. 8th Street, Friday, December 8, 6 p.m. Followed by a discussion on "The Status of Contemporary Italian Cinema," a conversation with Irene Bignardi, film critic, La Repubblica. Bruno and Mirella marry in 1989 and live in the little town of Piombino where everything seems wonderful until Bruno loses his job and Mirella takes up with a local TV idol.

For more information and complete synopses and casts of the films, log on to http://www.nyu.edu/pages/casaitaliana/

11/27/00