Luna, La (1979)

Director:

Bernardo Bertolucci

Writers:

Franco Arcalli (story) &
Bernardo Bertolucci (story) ...

Release Date:

30 September 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

While touring in Italy, a recently-widowed American opera singer has an incestuous relationship with her 15-year-old son to help him overcome his heroin addiction.

Plot Keywords:

Mother Son Incest | Oedipus Complex | Incest | Masturbation Scene | Mother Son Relationship

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win

Cast

Jill Clayburgh	...	Caterina Silveri
Matthew Barry	...	Joe Silveri
Veronica Lazar	...	Marina
Renato Salvatori	...	Communist
Fred Gwynne	...	Douglas Winter
Alida Valli	...	Giuseppe's Mother
Elisabetta Campeti	...	Arianna
Franco Citti	...	Man in Bar
Roberto Benigni	...	Upholsterer
Carlo Verdone	...	Director of Caracalla
Peter Eyre	...	Edward
Stéphane Barat	...	Mustafa
Pippo Campanini	...	Innkeeper
Rodolfo Lodi	...	Maestro Giancarlo Calo
Shara Di Nepi	...	Concetta

Also Known As:

Luna (USA)

Runtime:

142 min

Country:

USA | Italy

Language:

Italian | English

Colour:

Colour

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

France:-16 | Italy:VM14 | Iceland:16 | Finland:K-16 | USA:R | Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

Caracalla Thermals, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Fiction Cinematografica S.p.a.

Trivia:

Dedicated to Franco Arcalli.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Censor (1980)

Soundtrack:

Un ballo in maschera

Greek myth beautifully redressed

Creative people tend to be self-absorbed. Jill Clayburg's character is one of the best embodiments of such personas. She relishes stardom; her own victory. Unaware of her son's extreme admiration and need for mom, she agrees to take him to Rome with her. The son fighting for the center of mom's attention and the aging mom trying very hard to hold onto stardom create an immense tension. The pulling and pushing forces crash once Jill Clayburg discovers the grim reality about her son. Pushed off the track of creative artist role, she gets very confused. Knowing that she will never succeed as the loving, devoted mother, she tries to help in her way.

Many may look at this film as the incestuous story of mother and son. It takes one to have a deeper understanding of life of artists to appreciate the complicated story of role conflict. Dream like effects, locales, costumes, colors and sound design contribute immensely to the powerful plot. The rehearsal scenes are shot intelligently to convey Clayburg's discombobulated image of self. La Luna is a modern masterpiece telling the age old Greek story with a deeper understanding of human nature.