The beautiful and wonderfully named Giovanna Mezzogiorno joins the list of soulful Italian actresses with
Facing Windows, a pleasant cinematic fancy. Her character is a married Mom in an ordinary apartment, whose life is affected by two things: her fascination with the handsome man who lives across the courtyard, and the sudden arrival in her home of an elderly amnesiac (played by the late Massimo Girotti)--a well-dressed man found walking on the street, dazed and lost. Turkish-born director Ferzan Ozpetek (
Steam: The Turkish Bath) makes this simultaneously a slice of life and a vaguely fantastical situation. It probably all works out a little too neatly, but the unhurried pace and deep sympathy Ozpetek displays toward his main characters is refreshing. And when in doubt, he points the camera at the face of La Mezzogiorno, which solves all problems.
--Robert Horton
A young working-class wife and mother unlocks a freedom within her heart that she never expected. Don't miss this critically-acclaimed, award-winning romance.
1 Choices
The opening scenes of a bakery and the violence that ensues draws you into a tangled tale of lust and survival. Not only does the director deal with difficult decisions, he seeks to draw on your sympathy for all humans caught in the clutches of love.
As a young man runs from a bakery in fear of his life, a bloody handprint starts to fade into the future. We are taken into the present day as a woman and her husband walk home, arguing about life and seemingly insurmountable problems. Instantly you can recognize Giovanna's desire to be protected, loved and desired. She is unfulfilled and seeking adventure. To be honest, she is ripe for an affair mostly because her husband is not meeting her needs and seems to be lost in his own world of employment hell.
Suddenly she is talking to the sidewalk, because Filippo is talking to an elderly gentleman (Davide) who is suffering memory loss. After taking him to the police station, they all end up back and the noisy apartment complex where people hang their clothing out the window. It is all so romantic.
Then, we notice the facing windows. This becomes a focal point throughout the movie and is where most of the action occurs. Giovanna distrusts her husband's ability to look after the family, but it actually turns out she distrust herself and must meet Davide who will lead her to her destiny. He shows her how to transform her hobby into her life.
The entire plot seems centered around choices people make to survive emotionally and physically. We see flashbacks of Davide's life and he also has many hallucinations due to his past experiences.
The eyes in this movie are especially revealing. The director focuses on the eyes in many instances and the results are almost a terrifying intensity that I've never seen in any movie. The actors convey their emotions so well, it was stunning. There is one scene where Filippo is feeling his life is completely inadequate and the look on his face almost made me cry because you could imagine a man feeling that inadequate and desperate to not only please his woman, but provide for his family.
The cooking is especially wonderful and kitchen scenes and chocolate cakes dripping with dark chocolate icing are delicious moments in the movie.
In the end, we can see this is a movie about two individuals trapped by circumstance and overwhelming choices. Do they make the right choices in the end? Oh, the torment...and the beauty. I watched this four times in two days because this movie will take hold of your heart and I loved the kitchen scenes and Giovanna lurking about in her dark kitchen looking into a life she wanted to live.
~TheRebeccaReview.com
2 super... isn't it?
super..... the different perspective of the cinema it is really wonderful... because all we are got into the american film types.. offf ...it is enough I think... so this is the new dim for us or the dim was forgotten... the songs were really elected diligently...and also it leads to us thinking which we have already forgotten thanks to the monutone subjects like americans.this film is not dull or complex, it is the way of thinking and feel the emotions in the name of getting drenched to the skin..."
3 Beautiful
I hardly decided to watch the film and ı realised that ı made the rightful choice.The film is really sincere.Giovanna Mezzogiorno is beautiful and very good at her role.Massimo Girotti is losing words with his manner.I almost cry at the begining.Now he passed away and we can only see him in his films ...
Ferzan …zpetek is one of the precious directors in Europe.
I strongly advise you to watch this film...
4 much ado about nothing....
I thought this movie was just 'ok' ..it wasn't anything to write home about...while I loved the concept...two people falling for eachother after spotting one another through 'facing windows' ....what a romantic and sexy idea....but this movie just didnt come through for me....nothing much happened...I was sitting there thinking about all the things I would have done had I been the writer...they could have added more sublities...and rounded out the movie a bit...instead it was very flat with not much to it....one of my fav. scenes was when the young woman (forget her name) is cooking....I love to cook so I enjoyed watching her create things...but even that was flat...cooking is supposed to have been a developing passion of her's ..I would have like to have see that aspect of the story explored and developed more...all in all I would give this movie only 2 1/2 stars maybe 3....sadly though...because it could have been so much better if only I had been in on the brainstorming... :(
5 Peeking into the lives of others
I rented this film because it featured Italian actor Raoul Bova, who was in "Under the Tuscan Sun", yet I wasn't sure what to make of his character in this film. Was he an obsessed stalker, who dreamed of having the married woman in the apartment across from his? He pretty much told the lady so, and she didn't react in the way that I expected one would act when they find out a stranger watches her every move through the window. Creepy!
This film completely rests on the acting ability of Giovanna Mezzogiorno, and she is simply amazing! She physically resembles actress Debra Winger, so I kept thinking that it was her, speaking Italian, but no, this actress is just as great in her own right. When her husband decides to help a lost elderly man with amnesia, she's ambivalent at first, especially when they have two young children and the man stays overnight. There are lots of arguments between husband and wife, as her husband is constantly fired from jobs, and Giovanna is in a job she doesn't love (working at a chicken processing plant). As a side hobby that pays some money, she loves to bake pastries, and it just so happens that the mysterious strangers knows a lot about baking. The film tends to be slow moving, which only proves to me the quality of European films over American films that offer a lot of bang but little beneath the surface. This film, however, has a lot going on beneath the surface and an unpredictable twist that really changes your perception about some of the characters. I thought that was quite brilliant and had to watch it again to see how the knowledge would change how I viewed some scenes before the twist.
What I love most about this film was the performance of Giovanna and to see Italy on screen in a way that I remember most fondly from the three years I lived there. I loved how this movie tested my patience and really added layers of meaning between several characters (Giovanna and her husband, Giovanna and the mysterious guest, and Giovanna and her handsome "peeping Tom" neighbor). I could watch Giovanna in many films, as she really is a remarkable actress, with nuance and emotion expressed on her face without uttering a word. The film's epilogue was brilliantly done, as it incorporates an earlier flashback scene of the elderly man's young life. It all works incredibly well.
So why the three stars? Because there were some flaws in the film. There was a strange scene where Giovanna and Raoul are at an outdoor cafe and the elderly man asks Raoul about his job, so Raoul talks about it, and then the focus shifts between Raoul and Giovanna in conversation while the elderly man looks pensively at a mysterious younger man who inexplicably appears at the table. Of course, this is a visual trick, meant to show that the man is in his own world, reminiscing about his past, but it just seemed odd to me that Giovanna and Raoul would get so caught up in conversation with one another that they completely ignore the elderly man as if he weren't there. I didn't like that scene. I also didn't like the friend of Giovanni who encourages her to cheat on her husband. The friend is a dumpy looking woman, and in a film that seems to focus on beautiful people, why is it that beautiful people have such ugly friends? The extremity seemed superficial to me (as I have lived in Italy and don't recall seeing too many ugly people as that supporting actress). And a friend who encourages you to commit immorality isn't much of a friend. For whatever problems occur in Giovanna's marriage, the solution doesn't reside in another man's bed, no matter how good looking and available he is. For one thing, we never get to the heart of his obsession for Giovanna. The film is obviously about forbidden desires and the transparency of windows. I loved the metaphorical underpinnings of the movie, but there was something missing from the film. It is worth seeing though, but a word of caution...be patient, for the film's pace is reflective of the Italy I know and love, which is often at odds with our American character of instantaneous combustion.
6 The story is unfortunately average, but the lead excels
Love is a complex emotion. From youth to old age, it constantly changes colors, with shades manifesting when least expected. Perhaps this is why the cinema has maintained an immense fascination with the subjects of yearning, sexuality, passion, and comfort.
Turkish-born director Ferzan Ozpetek continues the curiosity with 'Facing Windows,' a dissection of unrequited hope in unhappy marriages. Its central character, Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno), is in the midst of discontent both at work and at home. When an aged, decrepit man turns up out of nowhere, she discovers in him a story of similar yearning between him and another man during the chaotic Holocaust. Giovanna investigates and along the way meets the man who lives in the apartment across from her own. They become infatuated and she sees her sexual and romantic yearnings now have the potential to be fulfilled.
As the story unfolds, Ozpetek often loses his way, forgetting pieces here and there, losing focus, thus confusing his audience; this is a pity, considering the intelligence of some of the writing, which is appropriately passionate. In the acting department, only Ms. Mezzogiorno stands out, inhabiting her role with utmost complexity, saving a film from its own confusion. It is ironic her performance is the only sign of clarity and refinement in the film when her character is anything but sure.
7 Haunting!
This is a haunting film that tries to blend the sadness of a man's later years, where no hope remains, with the sadness of a young mother's life, where there is yet hope for the future. The mother has a less than perfect marriage, has a frustrating job, and fantasizes a new life with the man with an an apartment with a window facing hers. The older man has a complex and checkered past, but has been able to provide for others. Although he can no longer find happiness or even peace in his own life, and reverts back to those times in the past where he did have love and meaning, he is still able to inspire. The movie deals with the questions of long vs. short-term goals in one's life, moral responsibilities to a spouse, ones children and ones self, different kinds of love, and more. I found it not an uplifting move, but an otherwise worthwhile one.
8 complex and beautiful
a deeply touching and moving film that will have you laughing, lusting and crying. This film deftly explores our deepest emotions, ambitions and fears. Remarkable performances and lovely scenery give flesh to the themes. The film delivers a unique plot with several layers to be enjoyed.
9 "Don't be content to merely survive."
Young Italian couple Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and Filippo (Filippo Nigro) find a well-dressed elderly man wandering in the street. Giovanna wants to leave the stranger, but Filippo insists on taking him back to their flat. The plan is to take the old man to the police station. There's no missing persons report on file, so the old man stays with the young family. The old man says his name is Simone, and a concentration camp tattoo on his left forearm reveals some clues to his tragic past. Simone's presence brings long simmering resentments to a boiling point. Giovanna sees Filippo's failure to dump Simone at the police station as just another one of his long list of failures. But when Lorenzo (Raoul Bova), a handsome neighbor begins to help, Giovanna's interest in Simone's past suddenly increases.
"Facing Windows" weaves flashbacks from Simone's past into Giovanna's efforts to track down the truth. At the beginning of the film, Giovanna is too angry and punchy to stop and pay attention to any one else's problems. She's locked into an unsatisfying marriage with a husband who's a disappointment. She longs to be a pastry chef, but instead she's shelved that idea for a more practical career--she's an accountant at a chicken packing plant. Lorenzo represents not only what she's missed, but also what she could have, and it soon becomes apparent that Giovanna is facing some difficult choices.
Giovanna's window faces Lorenzo's flat, so they can stare at each other from their respective windows. But that's just a literal translation of the title, and the film is much deeper and richer than that. "Facing Windows" is about facing one's past, and also facing the future. Simone's tragic past left him with a few treasured memories, and some unique ideas about the beauty of preserving love over time. Giovanna's chance meeting with the old man forces her to reexamine her life in a new light.
"Facing Windows" is an amazing film. I tend to find Italian film too sentimental for my tastes a great deal of the time, but "Facing Windows" is the perfect balance of nostalgia, hope, regret and loss. This is a beautiful film--one of the best I've seen all year--displacedhuman
10 Haunting, surreal and very modern, but unclear plot twists.
This prize-winning 2003 Italian import has a lot going for it. It's real. It's modern. And there's a haunting surreal quality to it.
There's a young couple with two children whose marriage is undergoing strains. They argue a lot and the romance seems to be gone from their marriage. There's a mysterious stranger whose window faces theirs. The wife secretly yearns for him. And then there is a old man found wandering in the streets. He's lost his memory but we soon discover he's a holocaust survivor with secrets of his own.
The plot is complex, the acting is excellent, and I applaud the filmmakers for the great realistic dialog coupled with the immediate need to resolve the mystery of who the old man is. The young wife finally meets the stranger whose windows face hers and a romance ensures. All seems to be moving quickly with deep character development and an intriguing story.
And then, about three-quarters through the film, it turns "post modern". In other words, the plot takes some implausible twists and turns, necessary scenes to develop the plot are missing, and the audience is forced to suspend their sense of reality as basic questions go unanswered. This disappointed me because I had really been getting into the story and there was no foreshadowing of this sudden turn of events. And this is what holds this film back from getting more than my modest recommendation although film buffs who enjoy exploring the unusual will probably like it.
11 The Miracle of Serendipity
FACING WINDOWS is a quiet little Masterpiece of a film. Director Ferszan Ozpetek and writer Gianni Romoli have plucked a bit of everyday life in a non-descript Roman sector, found ordinary people at the usual discontent with their static lives and then introduces moments of serendipity that awaken them to the meaning of being Alive.
Two apartments on the same level of neighboring buildings share window views that suggest the lack of privacy created by contemporary living styles in the cities - this city being Rome. In one apartment lives a family of four: two children usurp to waking lives of the mother Giovanna (the radiantly gifted Giavanna Mezzogiorno) and father Filippo (Filippo Nigro, an actor of presence and depth). Both are employed in menial jobs: Filippo works the night shift unable to progress in the work place, Giovanna is an accountant in a coarse and somewhat demeaning chicken packing plant. Their stretch to survive leaves little room for the magic that was once romance. The facing window of the apartment across the way is the home of the elegant, somewhat mysteriously desirable Lorenzo (Raoul Bova, as beautiful as Italian men come!).
Serendipity #1: the couple encounter an amnesiac Simone (Massimo Girotti, in his last and finest role) in the street who Filippo befriends and ultimately brings home, much to Giovanna's chagrin. Serendipity #2: Giovanna notices the man across the way (Lorenzo) who appears to have a genteel life that Giovanna secretly covets. It is the way these two incidents intertwine and reveal the identity of Simone (who becomes known as Davide, a casualty of the concentration camps of WW II who is seen in the opening of the film in a flashback to 1943, stabbing a fellow baker who has discovered his precious love secret and leads to choices that have haunted him until his encounter with Filippo and Giovanna) that bring about the self discovery of every character in ways that will alter your views of unfounded prejudices and thwarted dreams in a way few films have.
The pacing of this mesmerizing story, the sumptuous photography, the consistently high standard of acting, and the fearless and subtle manner in which homophobia is addressed make this a landmark movie. When released in 2003 it won Italy's best picture, best actress, and best actor (Girotti) for very good reasons. This graceful film deserves a very wide audience: this film is one of the great ones! In Italian with English subtitles. Grady Harp, November 2004
12 Friends and lovers
"Facing Windows" is without a doubt the most beautiful film of last year... that nobody got to see. Despite winning the Italian Best Film Award in 2003, the movie went virtually unseen in the US. But it's a haunting, lush tale that, once seen, is virtually impossible to forget.
Kindhearted and scatterbrained Filippo (Filippo Nigro) encounters a befuddled old man in the streets, and takes him home to be cared for by his young wife Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno). It's the last thing Giovanna needs -- aside from two young children, she has a rotten job and a fraying marriage that has lost its spark. She also is falling in love with the handsome young man (Raoul Bova) in the window facing hers.
But the old man, Simone (Massimo Girotti), has problems of his own, including flashbacks to a violent murder in 1943. He and Giovanna start to become friends, as he teaches her how to bake pastry like a true chef. The old man's memories start to unfold in a tragic story during the Holocaust, giving guidance to what Giovanna wishes to do with her life.
"Facing Windows" is a heavy movie -- it tackles marital problems, responsibility, Alzheimer's disease, homophobia, infidelity the Holocaust, and having your passions as the center of your life. But at its heart, it's about a woman waking up from a half-life, and reshaping things to the way they should be. Not to mention that the mountains of pastry will make viewers drool.
Ferzan Ozpetek draws viewers in as the movie becomes ever more mysterious and intriguing -- it starts off mundanely, with a flashback and a vision of a couple bickering. But the dramatic intensity begins to build, Ozpetek weaves a spiderweb of tension around the four people -- the old man, and the love triangle. His use of enigmatic flashbacks doesn't spoil the mysteries of old Simone/David's past, but rather enhances them.
Giovanna Mezzogiorno is superb as the same-named character -- she has that rare presence that fills up the screen and spills over. Her restrained performance is worshiped by the camera, which lingers all over her face. Massimo Girotti gives a subtler, but equally good performance as the old man, kindly and haunted by his tragic past.
"Don't be content to merely survive" -- nobody knows that lesson more than someone who never really got to live his life. Passionate and poignant, "Facing Windows" is a lush, beautiful look through the soul's window.
13 better than most hollywood fare, but...
If you are a fan of indulgent European cinema- or just films that work more through tense ambiguity and insinuation, rather than propulsive dialogue and action- then you will love this. If you loved 'Chocolat,' 'The Hairdresser's Husband,' or any of the red white & blue trilogy, you will dig this movie.
Part Love-Triangle/dissatisfied & yearning woman- part Holocaust survivor story, part overcoming the everyday staleness of life/investing it with meaning. The film tries to stand on three legs and is overbearing/ awkwardly balanced. Precarious. At least to me. I still recommend it over any of the crite love-films/romantic comedies taped up and airbombed on the american public, weekly. yes it was better than Raising Helen, but not better than Raising Arizona.
I wanted to love it, and it has a great deal going for it, mainly the main character's face (more on that below) but ultimately I left the theatre last night, more than a little dissatisfied. The film tries to accomplish too much (the holocaust survivor tangent that doesn't really get anywhere- it simply serves to heighten Giovanna's sense of personal crisis- needing to act upon her dreams and not let them dwindle), and much of the action is just a bit unelievable (when Giovanna and Lorenzo finally embark upon their...). My suspension of disbelief was pulled taut- almost to breaking.
Too much insinuation, too long, the ending was too neat (I would have ended it at the conclusion of the 'running down the stairs sequence').
However, The characters are grounded authentically. The opening scene with Giovanna and Fillipo- her being a tad bitchy and him being a big-hearted bear, it set them up well. The neighbor, Ermine, was a nice touch. The dilemma that Gio faces at work was a nice tactic to expose her timidity which she begins to work through.
I will say this: Giovanna Mezzogiorno gives a superb performance, working well with what the script gives her. Also- DAMN. What a face. Her countenance more than made the film worthwhile and enjoyable, and (since this is European film) the filmgoer is treated to myriad shots of her, looking out the window, staring into space, pensively daydreaming... The camera works lingers on her eyes, lips and brow, never tiring... She has a magnificently expressive visage- the kind of face that probably won't turn heads on the street, at a glance- but lures you in, more and more. I can't say enough about her.
Nice film score, I'll be considering picking up the soundtrack once it's dropped a few bucks and isn't special order any more. The musical theme reminds one of the Kronos Quartet's strings n' beats from ',Requiem for a Dream,' though less scarred by loss and anguish, more wishful and understated. It worked well.
All in all, I probably won't see it again, but I'd recommend it to my artier friends.
14 Sadly sweet, sugared with hope
"Facing Windows" realistically depicts a modern young Italian family, frustrated in lives that have much potential by are going nowhere. Giovanna (subtly portrayed by the lovely Giovanna Mezzogiorno) hates her job as an accountant in a poultry factory; her true love is baking, and she bakes pies and cakes in the evening to earn a little extra cash. Husband Filippo (Filippo Nigro) is stymied by family politics in his low-paying job and can't even make it off 3rd shift. The household's tension and unhappiness is leavened somewhat by its two young children. Whatever spark once existed between husband and wife is dampened by the rigors of parenthood and lack of job mobility. In a window across an alley, Giovanna spies on the carefree antics of Lorenzo, independent and sexy. It's seems only a matter of time before Giovanna makes fantasy a reality and escapes the confines of her unfulfilled life.
One day, the couple meets "Simone," a confused old man handing out wads of cash. Simone doesn't know who he is. Filippo kind-heartedly takes him in, supposedly just for the night. The old man has his own secrets and soon turns the couple's life upside down, bringing additional craziness and surprising sanity into the chaos of their lives.
The movie is outstanding. It has terrific writing, believable and sympathetic characters, a story with odd twists and turns and the beautiful Roman cityscape as its background. The soundtrack is terrific as well. One hauntingly beautiful song, "Gocce di Memoria," is repeated throughout the film. Take the R-rating seriously. There's language, some nudity and pretty heavy and long European-style sex scenes.
15 Secret "Window"
Giovanna is married with two children and having a hard time getting by. Her husband is in a low-paying job, the two seem to always agrue, and the love in their life doesn't seem as strong as it once was. Giovanna i fact finds herself at night spying on their neighbor, Filippo. It is a formof escape, and while, perhaps we are not entirely sure if she would ever cheat on her husband, we can still the problems she faces.
"Facing Windows" is directed by Ferzan Ozpetek ("Turkish Baths", "Harem Suare"), written by Ozpetek and Gianni Romoli, and was the winner of five David di Donatello Awards (Italy's Oscar) including "Best Picture", "Best Actor (Massimo Girotti) and "Best Actress" (Giovanna Mezzogiorno).
I saw this film back when it first opened in theaters some months ago, but Amazon didn't have it. Since that time I have been praising the film to anyone who will listen to me. It is so far one of the year's best films. And it has turne out to be a pretty good year at the movies.
"Facing Windows" to some might seem like a comedy\romance version of Hitchcock's "Rear Window". But I don't think Ozpetek is out to make a Hitchcockian film. The movie brims with passion. It is one of those movies that just manages to carry you away with its charm.
But there is more to the film than I an leading you to believe. There is a dark side to the story. Massimo Girotti (Best known in Visconti's "Ossessione") plays "Simone", an old man who seems to have lost his memory. Soon he starts to get flashbacks to a haunting past. And a love that never was.
To me it is Giovanna Mezzogiorno who keeps the film going. She is a pleasure to watch. "Facing Windows" will prove to be a good time to those who enjoy foreign films and light romance films. I have not forgotten about this film since I first saw it, hopefully the film will have the same effect on others.
Bottom-line: Wonderful blend of good old-fashion romance, and a darker drama. The romance part keeps our attention and Mezzogiorno is a delight. So far one of the year's best films. I loved it.
16 La Finestra di Fronte (Facing Windows)
The trailer can be misleading, but none-the-less, it is a beautifully shot film and compelling story of love, desire and a bit of mystery. Not so much about cooking...
The story slowly unfolds, revealing more than expected. An amnesiac elderly gentleman is found on the streets of Rome and brought into a young and slightly chaotic household (but typical from my experience). The wife's lost direction becomes more frustrating with the arrival of the amnesiac. Soon the search is on for his identity, causing her to eventually realize her potential.
Thrown into the mix is her helpless husband and an admiring neighbor who has seen her through the kitchen window.
The hidden love story here, in my opinion, is not about the wife, husband or neighbor, but rather the old man who still feels the love he felt when he was young.
I saw this film in a theatre, and was so immersed that it took me several hours to come back to reality. View with an open mind from the start.
The soundtrack is completely mesmerizing. The CD is hard to find, so listen carefully to the beautiful music while watching. Search for the Italian title on the CD.
17 Facing West
"Facing Windows" (La Finestra Di Fronte) is about the mis-connections, the social and personal things that keep us apart, keep us from loving how and whom we really want and doing what we really want to do.
Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) is living a life that she doesn't want: she loves her children and her job pays well but her husband Filippo is irresponsible; jumping from one job to the next: he's the proverbial child-man never accepting responsibility for his actions.
One night when Giovanna and Filippo are out for the evening they come upon an old man, obviously not a bum, who is disoriented and speaking of things long gone by. Over Giovanna's objections, Filippo takes the man Davide (Massimo Girotti) home with them. However grudgingly she does, Giovanna comes to realize, through the course of the film, that it is fate and good luck really that has brought she and Davide together. And more to the point it is Davide who snaps Giovanna out of her self-imposed ennui by telling her: "Your problem is that you've turned your passion (making pastry) into a hobby when it should have been the foremost thing in your life."
"Facing Windows" operates on several levels: as a detective story, as a love story and as a story of family and of marriage. But more importantly, it is about Giovanna waking up and realizing her potential and her dreams of fulfilling it; things like many of us, she has squandered and suppressed for a thousand "good" reasons.
