| Vermiglio | |
|---|---|
 International release poster | |
| Directed by | Maura Delpero |
| Written by | Maura Delpero |
| Produced by | Francesca Andreoli Maura Delpero Santiago Fondevila Leonardo Guerra Seràgnoli |
| Starring | Giuseppe De Domenico Tommaso Ragno |
| Cinematography | Mikhail Krichman[1] |
| Edited by | Gian Luca Mattei[1] |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by |
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Release date |
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Running time | 119 minutes |
| Countries | Italy France Belgium |
| Languages | Ladin Italian |
| Box office | $4 million[2][3] |
Vermiglio, also known asThe Mountain Bride, is a 2024drama film written, co-produced and directed byMaura Delpero. The film premiered at the81st Venice International Film Festival, where it won theGrand Jury Prize.[4] It was selected as theItalian entry forBest International Feature Film at the97th Academy Awards.[5] It received 14 nominations at the70th David di Donatello, and won 7 awards, includingBest Film.
In 1944, two Italian men -Attilio and Pietro - have deserted their army posts in Germany, and come to Attilio's home - the remote Trentino mountain village of Vermiglio - to seek refuge.
The village has a one room school, run by a stern teacher, Cesare (Attilio's uncle). Cesare and his wife Adele have just had their 9th child, but the baby boy dies in infancy (as had a previous child).
Lucia — their eldest daughter — falls in love with Pietro, who is of Sicilian origins. Lucia, becomes pregnant to Pietro and he agrees to marry her. Her aunt sees that Lucia is already pregnant prior to the wedding.
Various subplots revolve around the school, Catholic traditions, Lucia's siblings and the difficulties Adele faces trying to raise and feed a large family with little money or support from the patriarch Cesare.
Once news of the end of the war arrives, Pietro returns to Sicily with the aim of letting his loved ones know he has survived, promising Lucia he will write and return soon. However, after some time goes by with no word from Pietro, the family learns from the newspaper that Pietro was already married to a Sicilian woman and has been killed by her.
Meanwhile, Lucia gives birth to Antonia, the baby she was expecting with Pietro. Pietro's death devastates Lucia, who falls into despair and rejects the child, contemplating suicide, from which her brother Dino saves her. During her gradual recovery, Lucia travels to Sicily to seek closure, where she has a close encounter with Pietro's first wife and visits her husband's grave. Meanwhile, she has entrusted the child to an orphanage, where her younger sister Ada, who has become a nun, now works. Finally, Lucia decides to go to the city to work for a wealthy family, promising herself she will return later for her child.
Principal photography started on 28 August 2023,[1] and shootings wrapped in December.[6] The film was shot between theVermiglio, Carciato and Comasine towns in theTrentino-Alto Adige region.[7] It is produced by Cinedora (Italy), Charades (France), and Versus (Belgium).[8] Delpero decided to make the film after her father's death as a way to help ensure that the traditions in which she had grown up were not lost, including conducting many interviews with local people during pre-production.[9][10]
The film world-premiered in competition at the81st Venice International Film Festival.[11][12] It made its North American premiere at the49th Toronto International Film Festival.[13]
It was featured in the Limelight section of the54th International Film Festival Rotterdam to be screened in February 2025.[14]
The film received general positive reviews by critics.[15][16] On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, 93% of 58 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "Painterly and patient, Vermiglio carefully observes its provincial milieu to such absorbing effect that audiences will feel like they've become a part of the community."[17]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 85 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[18]
Jessica Kiang ofVariety affirmed that "economy" is the watchword of "deceptively formalist" film, that results from "deceptively formalist" direction, editing, musical compositions to costumes, contributing "to a fascinating narrative remove, which is belied by the close-up clarity of the imagery". Kiang wrote that although the plot is set in the past, it "operates like a future family secret playing out in the present tense" through " the spirit of the mothers and the sisters and the daughters who came before and after, and who trusted the imperious mountains to keep their secrets".[19]
The film received favorable reviews from Italian film critics.[20][21] Mattia Pasquini ofCiak wrote that like the previous filmMaternal the screenplay is about the mother-child relationship set on an "extremely refined framework, both linguistically, stylistically and narratively coherent and homogeneous".[22] Federico Pontiggia ofCinematografo stated that the film draws on "[Delpero's] prior documentary experience with greater ambition, free will and calmness," observing that "the direction of actors is excellent, the anti-spectacle concept is cohesive and confident, the poetry of war and peace is marvelous. Here we have a consummate auteur: Maura Delpero."[23]
| Award | Year | Category | Recipient(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Venice Film Festival | 3 September 2024 | Golden Lion | Maura Delpero | Nominated | [24] |
| Grand Jury Prize | Won | [25] | |||
| Sorriso Diverso Venezia Award for Best Italian Film | Won | [26] | |||
| NUOVOIMAIE Talent Award for Best New Young Actress | Martina Scrinzi | Won | |||
| La Pellicola d'Oro Award for Best Chief Electrician | Kristian De Martiis | Won | |||
| Chicago International Film Festival | 27 October 2024 | Gold Hugo | Vermiglio | Won | [27] |
| Camerimage | 23 November 2024 | Golden Frog for Best Cinematography | Mikhail Krichman | Nominated | [28] |
| Gotham Awards | 2 December 2024 | Best International Feature | Maura Delpero, Francesca Andreoli, Santiago Fondevila Sance, Leonardo Guerra Seràgnoli | Nominated | [29] |
| European Film Awards | 7 December 2024 | European Film | Vermiglio | Nominated | [30] |
| European Director | Maura Delpero | Nominated | |||
| San Diego Film Critics Society | 9 December 2024 | Best Foreign Language Film | Vermiglio | Nominated | [31] |
| Golden Globe Awards | 5 January 2025 | Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language | Nominated | [32] | |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 12 January 2025 | FIPRESCI Prize - Best International Film Feature | Nominated | [33] | |
| Best International Screenplay | Maura Delpero | Won | |||
| David di Donatello | 7 May 2025 | Best Film | Vermiglio | Won | [34][35] |
| Best Director | Maura Delpero | Won | |||
| Best Original Screenplay | Won | ||||
| Best Producer | Francesca Andreoli, Leonardo Guerra Seràgnoli, Santiago Fondevila Sancet, Maura Delpero for Cinedora, withRai Cinema - in collaboration with Charades, Versus | Won | |||
| Best Actress | Martina Scrinzi | Nominated | |||
| Best Actor | Tommaso Ragno | Nominated | |||
| Best Casting | Maurilio Mangano and Stefania Rodà | Won | |||
| Best Cinematography | Mikhail Krichman | Won | |||
| Best Production Design | Pirra and Vito Giuseppe Zito, Sara Pergher | Nominated | |||
| Best Costumes | Andrea Cavalletto | Nominated | |||
| Best Make-up | Frédérique Foglia | Nominated | |||
| Best Hairstyling | Tiziana Argiolas | Nominated | |||
| Best Editing | Luca Mattei | Nominated | |||
| Best Sound | Dana Farzanehpour, Hervé Guyader and Emmanuel de Boissieu | Won |