Made in Italy (2020 film)

Made in Italy is a 2020 comedy-drama film written and directed by James D'Arcy (in his feature directorial debut). It stars Liam Neeson, his son, Micheál Richardson, Valeria Bilello, and Lindsay Duncan, and follows an artist who must restore a villa with his estranged son after his wife dies in a terrible car crash.

Made in Italy
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJames D'Arcy
Produced by
Written byJames D'Arcy
Starring
Music byAlex Belcher
CinematographyMike Eley
Edited by
Production
companies
Distributed byLionsgate
Release date
  • 7 August 2020 (2020-08-07) (United States)
Running time
93 minutes
Country
  • Italy
  • United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
Box office$2.7 million[1][2]

The film was released in the United States in theatres and through video on demand platforms on 7 August 2020 by IFC Films.[3]

Plot

Jack Foster is getting divorced from his wife Ruth. Her family is selling the art gallery, where he works as a manager, which devastates Jack. He decides to buy the gallery by possibly selling the old Italian home he owns with his estranged father Robert, a famous artist. The house belonged to Jack's mother and Robert's wife, an Italian woman who died in a terrible car accident.

Jack takes Robert with him to Italy. Jack tells Robert he needs the money to buy the gallery from Ruth's parents. When they arrive, they find it is completely rundown. Kate, an estate agent, comes to survey the home. She tells them the house is in really bad condition, but if they fix the house, it could be worth more. Jack tries to clean but then decides to sell the house as it is.

Jack meets Natalia at a restaurant who is also the owner. On the other hand, Robert looks at photos of his deceased wife and the whole house reminds him of her. Robert decides to help Jack in fixing the home.

They hire locals to renovate and patch up the house. Robert and Jack befriend some of the locals including Natalia and invite them for a party to the house. Natalia tells Jack that she has an eight-year-old daughter and she and her husband are divorced, but her husband lied about her so she only gets partial custody.

A buyer comes to look at the house but is not satisfied. Kate tells Robert that the house needs more work. Robert asks Natalia for help. Natalia and her daughter begin helping renovate the house. Robert tells her how after his wife died, he sent Jack away to boarding school to keep him away from all the reminders of his mother. He also tells her that since she died, he could not drive and could not paint.

Kate comes over and sees the house almost fully done. A couple arrives to look at the house, and decide they want to buy it. Meanwhile, Jack tells Natalia about his impending divorce and how Ruth has taken everything from him, which she relates to. He tells her how he could not paint like his father but thought he could make the gallery a success, but his father never helped. Later, he enters his father's workspace and sees painting after painting of his mother, and of himself.

Robert discovers him, and Jack wants to know why he has locked away all his memories and his childhood. Robert says he thought it was the fastest way to get him out of pain, and Jack screams at him that he never let him in and never talked to him, He begins wrecking the space, and Robert holds him as they collapse onto the floor. Later, the two talk about her for the first time, sharing memories of her, and Robert begins crying, recounting how he was so wrapped up in painting that he let a young Jack walk to school. Robert was supposed to be in the car, and he says it is his fault. Jack hugs his father and comforts him, and tells him about his divorce from Ruth to which Robert says, thank god.

The next day, at the house, the couple who decides to buy the house, disrespects it and in response Robert tells them that he will not sell the house to them. Jack gets angry. Robert admits he cannot give the house up and Jack accuses him of never having any intention to sell, and returns to England.

Robert comes to see Jack, telling him he sold his London home and has enough to buy Jack out of his share of the Tuscany. He urges him to buy the gallery back. Jack asks him why he never came, and Robert says Ruth told him Jack did not want him to, that it was too much pressure. Robert tells him he is going to live at the Italy home and host painting holidays. Jack goes to the gallery, and when Ruth says she wwill not accept any offer for the gallery, he instead presents her with the signed divorce papers.

In Italy, Robert leads a painting class where Kate is his student. Jack arrives and tells Robert, it was never about the money, and that all he wants is his father. He then meets with Natalia, who wants to know why he did not say goodbye. He tells her he saw her with Marzio, and she explains he is the father of her child and she has to maintain some relationship with him. They make up and decide to take their relationship further.

Cast

Production

In October 2018, it was announced Liam Neeson and Micheál Richardson had joined the cast of the film, with James D'Arcy directing from a screenplay he wrote. Pippa Cross, Sam Tipper-Hale, and Nicola Serra will serve as producers on the film under their CrossDay Productions and Indiana Productions banners, respectively. HanWay Films and Ingenious Media will also produce the film.[4] In May 2019, Lindsay Duncan and Valeria Bilello joined the cast of the film.[5]

Principal photography began in April 2019.[6]

Release

In February 2020, IFC Films acquired US distribution rights to the film.[7] It was released on video on demand as well as in limited theaters in the United States on 7 August 2020.[8]

Reception

Box office and VOD

In its debut weekend, Made in Italy grossed $34,400 from 111 theaters, and was also the second-most rented film on Apple TV and the iTunes Store.[9][10] In its second weekend the film finished third on Apple TV's chart and fourth on Spectrum's.[11]

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 49% based on 68 reviews, with an average rating of 5.68/10.[12] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[13] Most of the reviewers' gripes centered around the story and screenplay; Ryan Lattanzio of IndieWire wrote that the "treacly slog" of the script betrayed the "storied talent" of Neeson and the "promising gifts" of Richardson,[14] and Peter Travers of Rolling Stone referred to it as a "mawkish tale" of grief and healing.[15]

References
  1. "Made in Italy (2020)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on 13 January 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  2. "Made in Italy (2020)". The Numbers. Archived from the original on 9 October 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  3. Hersko, Tyler (30 June 2020). "'Made in Italy' Trailer: Liam Neeson Stars in James D'Arcy's Uplifting Directorial Debut". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 4 September 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  4. McNary, Dave (29 October 2018). "Liam Neeson to Star in Comedy 'Made in Italy'". Variety. Archived from the original on 1 March 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  5. Wiseman, Andreas (7 May 2019). "Lionsgate Takes UK Rights To Liam Neeson Starrer 'Made In Italy', Lindsay Duncan & Valeria Bilello Join — Cannes". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 8 May 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  6. Barraclough, Leo (7 May 2019). "Lionsgate U.K. Acquires Comedy 'Made in Italy,' Starring Liam Neeson". Variety. Archived from the original on 8 May 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  7. Roxborough, Scott (24 February 2020). "Berlin: IFC Takes James D'Arcy's 'Made in Italy' for U.S. (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 5 July 2020. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  8. D'Alessandro, Anthony (11 May 2020). "IFC Films Liam Neeson & Micheal Richardson Pic 'Made In Italy' Eyes Late Summer Release". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 14 May 2020. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
  9. Anthony D'Alessandro (9 August 2020). "Shia LaBeouf Action Film 'The Tax Collector' Cashes In $317K At Weekend Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on 9 August 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2020.
  10. Brueggemann, Tom (10 August 2020). "Shia LaBeouf's 'The Tax Collector' Scores on VOD and in Theaters; 'The Secret Garden' Strong". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  11. Brueggemann, Tom (17 August 2020). "Canadian Box Office Reopens as 'Unhinged' and 'SpongeBob Movie' Take the Lead". IndieWire. Archived from the original on 20 August 2020. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  12. "Made in Italy (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  13. "Made in Italy Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 16 September 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  14. https://www.indiewire.com/2020/08/made-in-italy-review-liam-neeson-son-micheal-richardson-1234578212/ IW
  15. https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-reviews/made-in-italy-movie-review-liam-neeson-1034255/ RS
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