The Night of the Shooting Stars—a subtle mix of wartime hardship, comedic interludes, and a hint of Italian magical realism—was named the best film of 1982 by the prestigious National Society of Film Critics. Drawing inspiration from their own experiences in Nazi-occupied Italy, the co-directing Taviani brothers (Paolo and Vittorio) essentially remade and expanded their 1954 debut short "San Miniato, July 1944," framing its touching tale of wartime survival as a bedtime story, told by a loving mother recalling when she was a six-year-old child fleeing her Tuscan village during the closing days of World War II. Although American liberators are expected soon, the Nazis have rigged village houses with mines, so the residents of San Martino head for the countryside, where encounters with fascists are both common and deadly. The film's dreamy nostalgia isn't as satisfying as, say, that of Cinema Paradiso, but it's still a lovely work, filled with quintessentially Italian vitality, while also proving—as one character observes—that "even true stories can end well." DVD extras include Carlo Lizzani's feature-length documentary “Talking About Cinema: Taviani Brothers,” and a booklet containing an essay by Italian cinema expert Peter Bondanella. Recommended. (J. Shannon)
The Night of the Shooting Stars
Koch Lorber, 103 min., in Italian w/English subtitles, R, DVD: $26.98 Volume 23, Issue 3
The Night of the Shooting Stars
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