words by Gabi Logan
This past Friday, actress Laura Morante’s directorial debut Ciliegine opened in 50 Italian theatres. Morante co-wrote, co-produced, and starred in the film, which took seven years and three remakes to put together.
A romantic comedy at heart, the film mixes the rampant neuroses and recreational psychoanalysis of Woody Allen films with the innocent, child-like antics of the Peanuts cartoons. Morante based her character Amanda in part on Peanut’s mercurial Lucy to highlight women’s disproportionate reactions to men’s inattentiveness.
Ciliegine (Italian for little cherries) draws its name from the opening scene, which epitomises Morante’s exploration of the psychological differences between the sexes. During their anniversary dinner, Amanda spontaneously breaks up with her boyfriend when he carelessly eats the only cherry from their celebratory cake.
Amanda then befriends Antoine, played by Pascal Elbé, and lets down her guard because she assumes he’s gay. Her psychoanalytical friends, played by Isabelle Carré and Patrice Thibaud, decide to keep up the ruse to help Amanda get over her androphobia.
Directed in French and set in Paris, Ciliegine comes from French production houses Maison de Cinèma and Soudaine Compagnie. “In France, they tell me it’s an Italian film, in Italy that it’s a French film. I’ve created a UFO”, said Morante. The film opens in France under the title La cerise sur le gȃteau on the 2nd of May 2012.
