Meloni’s supporters are pushing for renewed funding for LGBT+ and pro-Pal cinema. Mantovano is unhappy with the MIC

Rome. The election is drawing near, and so here comes “Woke” with a patriotic twist, coming soon to a cinema near you. With the rise of the gloomy Vannacci, Meloni’s supporters are beginning to say to one another: “It’s time to break free”. “It’s time,” they say, “to stop being so hostile towards the LGBT community.” And if the seventh art is the strongest weapon – as He once said, and Cinecittà was born – now that She, Meloni, is at Chigi, with Alessandro Giuli at the Collegio Romano, we are instead seeing the emergence of rainbow-themed contributions (with pro-Pal and anti-male undertones). But let’s get to the heart of the matter.

Among the films generously funded through selective grants, one worth mentioning right from the start is the story of two snipers, ‘So the Lovers Could Come Out Again’. It tells the tale of two Lebanese men who – you guessed it – fall in love along the Green Line in Beirut: ‘A gay love story set against the backdrop of war’. But not to be missed – perhaps even more so – is the film by Chiara Valerio’s wife, Marcella Libonati, based on Valerio’s work “Chi dice e chi tace”. There is the action drama featuring wounded Palestinian children. And finally, amongst others, the story of the Milanese trapper who “rejects the gender identity imposed by society”.

In short, there are many titles. Particularly amongst the works of young authors who contrast Roberto Vannacci’s “A Certainly Bleak Future” with “The Future of Government” on the subject of hegemony. But let’s take another step back.

The committee responsible for selecting these films, as you will recall, is the same one that previously rejected the documentary (or film?) on Giulio Regeni. The committee of experts “for the allocation of selective grants” that provoked Giuli’s fury. Which forced the minister to report to Parliament. Which led him to sack the head of the technical secretariat, Emanuele Merlino (soon to be at Chigi – another film). And which caused so much trouble.

More recently, the film (or documentary?) about Regeni was then rediscovered amongst the ‘special projects’, whilst the commission – who knows if the government is aware of this this time – continued its selection process.

So, alongside revered masters such as Moretti, Amelio and the divine Bruni Tedeschi, the titles from FdI’s ‘Futuro filmico’ programme now stand out amongst the selections. These are debut films, or works by young filmmakers, whose plots entertain but also raise a question. A serious one. Just one. In short, was there really any need to challenge the centre-right’s hegemony for years on end if the flagship epic is “Mademoiselle”? (“Mademoiselle”, that is, the Milanese trapper who doesn’t know whether she’s male or female but is against society). There you have it. Because it is fine – in fact, it is brilliant – to distance oneself from Roberto Vannacci. But could the right-wing government not have found an alternative to Chiara Valerio and her “Chi dice, chi tace”? Who knows. Better to keep quiet, in fact.

The titles of the emerging talents, however, are no less humorous than those of the many established figures selected by the committee. Alongside the writer from Scauri, there are in fact directors, writers, presenters and actors of renown (and of the left) who sometimes combine all these roles in a single individual. Pierfrancesco Diliberto, better known as Pif, for instance, secured his 700,000 euros for a film of ‘particular artistic quality’ (title: ‘Che Dio perdona a tutti’). ‘Cuore nero’, by Emanuele Crialese – which has nothing to do with ‘fascist hearts’ but is based on Silvia Avallone’s book – received 750,000. There is also Claudio Cuppellini’s film adapted from Antonio Scurati’s novel (800,000), "Cara Giulia", inspired by the story of Giulia Cecchettin (600,000), and "Gaza – Linea di difesa" by Alessandro Tonda (550,000). Names, things and people who, to avoid the ‘dirty dozen’ effect (or Vannacci’s ‘Fratelli’), are very much in the mould of Fabio Fazio’s ‘Fratelli’. Speaking of which, who knows what’s going on at *Che tempo che fa* between the new rainbow hegemony and Alfredo Mantovano, Giorgia’s katechon… Malicious tongues say you look dismayed and a little discontented. And that you whisper under your breath: “Back when He was here…”. A surreal sense of regret. He. Meaning Gennaro Sangiuliano.