Nadine (Astrid Bergès Frisbey) is an aspiring model, a beautiful young French woman, determined to break into the Paris fashion scene. Fausto (Elio Germano), a bold Italian, is trying to make it in Paris as a hotel waiter. They meet, serendipitously, when they sneak out onto the roof of the hotel for a cigarette. From their first encounter, Fausto and Nadine recognize each other: fragile, alone, and obsessed with proving their worth, hopeful that one day, life will offer them something better than the marginal existence they have inherited. Director Claudio Cupellini creates memorable characters in these two people who possess nothing, except for their bodies and the chemistry that ignites between them. Over five years—during which they both experience the blackest depths of desperation and the highest peaks of social success—Fausto and Nadine continue to cross paths, lose sight of each other, and then return to the siren song of amour fou. The choice between a great love and the seductions of the world are explored with nuance in this passionate story of lovers who discover that they are each other’s home.
Copresented by Italian Society Berkeley