Clip from Roberta Torre's DARK SEA (MARE NERO), starring Luigi Lo Cascio, Anna Mouglalis, Maurizio D
FOR CLIP & STILLS, SEE THE BOTTOM OF THIS ARTICLE
There's a downloadable clip from Roberta Torre's Italian-French dramatic thriller Dark Sea (Mare nero) on the website of Cinecittà Holding S.p.A.. The movie is scheduled to have its world première at the 59th Locarno International Film Festival (59º Festival Internazionale del Film Locarno) in Switzerland on August 6th at 4:15 p.m. (16:15), and to subsequently be screened there on August 7th at 9:30 p.m. (21:30) and August 8th at 4:15 p.m. (16:15). 01 Distribution s.r.l. is scheduled to release it theatrically in Italy on August 25th.
As was previously reported here and there on ScreenAnarchy, the screenplay for Dark Sea was written by Torre in collaboration with Heidrun Schleef, based on a story by Torre, Marcello Siena, and Andrea Piva in collaboration with Andrea Di Stefano. The movie stars Luigi Lo Cascio as Luca, Anna Mouglalis as Veronica, Maurizio Donadoni as Sabino, Andrea Osvárt as Valentina Martini, Massimo Popolizio as Laganà, Monica Samassa as Monica, and Rossella D'Andrea as Andrea.
Here's a synopsis for Dark Sea from the website of international sales agent Adriana Chiesa Enterprises s.r.l. (A.C.E.): "A murder, just one news item like so many others. For police inspector Luca, busy helping his beautiful girlfriend Veronica move in with him, it should be nothing more than a routine call at an inconvenient time. But Luca is scrupulously devoted to his job and has a special sensitivity that sets him apart from his colleagues and their impassive cynicism. This is also what made Veronica want to commit herself so quickly to a relationship with him. She didn't think twice about enthusiastically accepting to move from her native France to Italy to live with him. ¶ Though still young and not yet put through significant tests, their love is strong and shows all the signs typical of a very intense, exclusive bond. The call, however, puts Luca onto a case that immediately has a disturbing effect on him, as it absorbs him more than any case he has ever dealt with before: Valentina, a beautiful young woman, barely out of her teens, has been mysteriously murdered in her off-campus flat. For Luca, this is the start of an investigation that soon oversteps the bounds of duty, creeping into his private life and making a way into the obscure areas of his relationship with Veronica. Though Luca had always tried to keep his work separate from his personal life, this particular investigation seems to slip often into his conversations with his partner. From the start, the investigation does not seem to be very promising. Valentina seems to be no more than a fleeting image that testimonies by friends and family cannot fully grasp: a model student, yet a restless frequenter of dangerous circles. Against the backdrop of a sprawling and composite metropolis, Luca quickly ventures into the tortuous life of a clandestine night spot. Its atmosphere charged with a grotesque sensuality numbs him with its hallucinatory undercurrents, and he is finally led into venturing into sex clubs where couple-swapping is practiced. In the meantime, his relationship with Veronica has also taken an unexpected turn. As a real estate agent, Veronica is very often in contact with unknown men, showing them empty apartments. The suggestive image of his girlfriend in the company of strangers begins to turn into an obsessive erotic fantasy for Luca, leading to a crescendo of provocative games that Veronica, though with some qualms, agrees to play along to. ¶ The investigation underway comes to a standstill and it seems that, unless there is some unexpected development, the mystery of Valentina's death will remain unsolved. Nevertheless, acting without the knowledge and consent of his supervisors, Luca pursues his research. Increasingly obsessed by the image of Valentina, he continues to infiltrate into the circles once frequented by her. He does this even without having the investigation as a pretext. It is as if, since the very beginning of the case, he is trying to uncover something that affects him very closely. He continues his investigation recklessly, fiercely, totally abandoning his sense of duty or any ethical principles, until he goes beyond his own limits. Incapable of any resistance, Luca slips into the delirium of a circle of Hell. He lives a series of extreme experiences, no longer able to distinguish what is real and what is a figment of his feverish imagination. Perhaps it is all a dream - or more precisely a nightmare - filled with fantasies, visions and haunting images. Like a dark sea, devoid of light, with no way out. Perhaps it is only a dream, from which one cannot wake up. Or perhaps not."
Here's a description of Dark Sea from the Locarno International Film Festival website: "When his young and beautiful friend Veronica comes over from France to live with him, Luca, a police inspector, is working on a murder investigation. The corpse of a young twenty year old student, Valentina Martini, has been found, naked, hands tied behind her back and with strange mutilation marks on her face. Both repulsed and fascinated by the crime, Luca becomes totally immersed in the case, gradually discovering that Valentina, a complex and disturbed young girl, was a diligent student but also an apprently willing prostitute. Luca's investigations take him into the underground world of strip clubs and the swinging scene. His male fantasies affcect both his professional objectivity and his relationship with Veronica. Becoming increasingly jealous and possessive, he provokes her to the point that he risks losing her. He gradually starts to objectify her to make her fit his erotic obsessions. A breathless film noir, with strong performances - Luigi Lo Cascio and Anna Mouglalis - it soon becomes apparent that Mare nero goes far beyond a stragithforward police thriller, focussing on Luca's internal world, which progressively takes over the story. The contrasting lighting, the darkness of the spaces in which he makes love with Veronica, the virginal white of the forensic medical centre's corridors are so many visual shocks that reflect those the protagonist experiences. As the film continues, Luca becomes ever more lost in his torments and desires; water is everywhere, both luminous and suffocating, a metaphor for his fatal immersion and state of emotional shipwreck. In this feature film, Roberta Torre marries a particularly personal mise en scène to superb cinematography to create a highly oppressive ambiance."
Dark Sea clip (downloadable 2.4 MB WMV file)
Dark Sea stills gallery (10 stills)
Dark Sea Italian poster (436 KB JPEG)
Cattleya: Dark Sea (w/ 5 stills)
