EditLazzaro Felice (2018)

In the transfiguring and transfixing third feature from Alice Rohrwacher (The Wonders), we find ourselves amid a throng of tobacco farmers living in a state of extreme deprivation on an estate known as Inviolata, with wide-eyed teenager Lazzaro (nonprofessional discovery Adriano Tardiolo) emerging as a focal point. Although this all seems to be taking place in the past (as implied by the warm grain of Hélène Louvart’s 16mm cinematography), a stunning mid-movie leap vaults the narrative squarely into the present day and into the realm of parable. In a fable touching on perennial class struggle with Christian overtones, Rohrwacher summons the spirit of Pasolini, while also nodding to Ermanno Olmi and Visconti. (New York Film Festival)

This story takes place in an isolated Italian village with beautiful nature where, unfortunately, rules the evil Marchesa Alfonsina de Luna, the queen of cigarettes. So, where is Lazzaro in the picture? He is a young but very naive peasant who has an unusual friendship with the imaginative Tancredi, a man of noble origin. One day Tancredi comes up with the absurd idea to organise his own kidnapping. Since he cannot do it by himself, the young nobleman uses the help of the childlike and trusting Lazzaro. The peasant cherishes his friendship with Tancredi which ultimately leads to him to the big city. Being for a first time in the modern world seems surrealistic for Lazzaro. He is like a small particle lost in the wind, wondering around and, probably, hoping to be found and saved.