Reality

Matteo Garrone's sardonic Italian comedy marks a major genre switch from his acclaimed crime drama Gomorrah. Here, outgoing Naples fish-seller Luciano (Aniello Arena) meets a man who became locally famous from his participation on Grande Fratello, Italy's version of the voyeuristic "reality" TV hit Big Brother, in which good-looking strangers cohabit in a house filled with eavesdropping cameras. Luciano attends open auditions for the upcoming season, and gradually becomes obsessed with the notion of appearing on the show himself (he suspects that undercover talent scouts are spying on him to evaluate his potential). Before long, Luciano quits his job, gives away his household possessions, and looks for mystic omens confirming that he is, indeed, fated to go to Rome to appear in the series. Meanwhile, his wife and extended family are left to cope with this madness. A comedy of media-celebrity monomania, Reality benefits from Garrone's exceptionally handsome filmmaking style, which incorporates several impressively choreographed continuous-take sequences. An oddball film on a major contemporary cultural theme, this is recommended. [Note: DVD extras include an interview with director Matteo Garrone (24 min.), a “Dreams Are My Reality” behind-the-scenes featurette (20 min.), a profile of star Aniello Arena (13 min.), an “Inside Reality” production featurette (9 min.), deleted scenes (7 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for an interesting film.] (C. Cassady)