LITTLE MORE THAN A YEAR AGO (POCO PIU DI UN ANNO)

Italy, 2003, 105 minutes, Colour.
Marco Filiberti, Urbano Barbarini, Alessandra Accia, Rosalinda Celantano.
Directed by Marco Filiberti.

Little More Than a Year Ago is quite an achievement, a tour de force for its writer-director-actor, Marco Filiberti. He made the film at the age of 31. It is a mature piece of writing, a skilful piece of directing, and quite and exhibitionist and in-your-face performance. However, in real life the artist is much more reticent, talking about serious issues in his film even though the theme is the portrait of an Italian porn star. (There are sufficient scenes to indicate the style and work of the porn star, scattered throughout the film, and not over-emphasised.)

The director wanted to take an extreme situation about reputation and wanting to live on in people's memories. His central character comes from an ancient, very wealthy family, who have fallen on hard times. He resents his father's shady financial deals and womanising, and at his mother's death has left their French home and moved to Rome with success as a porn star. When his father dies, his brother comes to find him and he returns for the funeral. Only his aunt knows the truth. His brother, suspicious and always wanting to care for his younger brother, returns to Rome and eventually discovers the truth, follows his brother in his work, sees his gay relationships, goes to the gay clubs but finds a world of individuals and he gradually is able to let go of his starchiness, rethinking his attitudes towards many things, especially towards his estranged wife, and is able to reconcile with her.

Filiberti is at pains to make his central character very humane, not merely a dumb character being exploited by the industry. He is in control of his life, knows his sexual urges, knows that he is unable to form relationships of any depth, yet becomes free by the understanding and support of his brother. The significant even in the film is he and his brother witnessing a single mother being killed in a street accident, the young boy seeing his mother killed. They take him to the hospital, the boy forms an attachment to the star, his grandparents do not know his work. As the bond grows, the effect on the star is wanting to adopt him or be a foster-father, an older brother. By accident the grandparents discover the truth and fight him in the courts. He loses. He dies at the age of thirty, after opening the Gay Olympics in Rome. Fourteen years later, the young orphan boy has grown up, wants to investigate the star and begins to make documentary on him - with a range of characters giving straight-to-camera interviews to create the impression of this documentary.

The film is quite emotional, well acted, and challenges audiences' stances on many issues, judgments on characters and appearances, an invitation to see complexities and depth in human nature.

1. The impact of the film, dramatic, comic, challenging? The subject matter and the average audience? Distasteful as many of the characters in the film find it, challenging as many of the characters in the film find it? The writer-director keeping a balance between the potential offensiveness and the invitation to explore?

2. The Roman settings, apartments, streets, film sets? The contrast with the French sequences and the decaying mansion? The musical score, songs?

3. The work of Marco Filiberti in each of the areas, the skilfulness and insights of his writing, the quality of his directing, the energy and seeming exhibitionism of his performance?

4. Audience response to the themes, the possibility of suspending moral judgments, understanding characters, appearances and reality? The plausibility of the central characters, his background, his orientation, his choices, his success, his feeling alive when being an exhibitionist on-screen, his amoral attitude towards his own sexuality and pornography performances? The sympathy, playing games with his nephew, his friendship with Luna, his rapport with his brother, coming alive? With Pla Pla and his caring for him, wanting to be a foster-father? Could audiences believe that this character could be so good deep down despite his reputation (the reactions of people on learning things, seeing his videos, the magazines, television interviews)?

5. The testimony of the people talking in the documentary, the cliches, the warmth, the ordinary statements? Putting together a picture of Riki?

6. The young man making the video, the studios, the archives, looking at the material, the reticence of Federico? Breaking through? The irony that it was Pla Pla making the film, calling Ricki "father" at the end of the film?

7. Federico and getting out the diaries, the quality of Riki's diaries, the final year and the memories?

8. Federico, the older brother, the flashbacks and the credits scenes of the home movies and the relationships within the family? Coming to get Riki, taking him back, Riki's clothes, Charlotte's negative reaction? His meeting Julie and the boy? Relating to them well? At the funeral itself, the priest's comment about the exemplary nature of the father - and the two brothers talking about the reality, humiliating their mother, womanising, shady deals, the bankruptcy, the dilapidation of the mansion? Riki and his playing ball with his nephew? His returning to Rome?

9. Federico going with him, not understanding what he did, the phone calls, meeting Luna and her explanation of herself? His discovery of the truth, incomprehensibility, disgust? Listening to Riki, going to the set, the strange array of people there, the continuity girl and her chatter, the preparations for filming, the actual filming, Federico collapsing? His trying to understand, going out with Riki to the clubs, meeting his friends, the long discussions with Luna? The outing at the beach, meeting Claudio? His gradual change, drinking, loosening up? Charlotte and her arrival, her insulting Luna and Riki, his sending her away? The discussions with Julie, being a different person, making more time for his son, Julie's plan for turning the house into a tourist attraction? The support?

10. Riki himself, growing up, discussions about his sexuality, leaving home, the producer finding him, setting him up, the scenes of the photo shoots, the scenes of the pornographic films, his taking things for granted, the phone calls, the agent, with the stars, with the continuity girl? The Santa song and his performances? Yet the contrast then with him being at home, his going out roaming, the pick-ups, the clubs? Yet wanting to read, writing the diary? The growing bond with his brother, with Julie and the nephew? The friendship with Luna, her killing herself, the letter, the sculpture, his grief?

11. The accident, the brothers taking the boy to hospital, the grieving grandparents, the lesbian mother and her alienation from her parents? His taking the boy out? The grandparents seeing the television, discovering the truth, forbidding him to come, Pla Pla going to his home, understanding what he did, Riki taking him back? The decision to go to court, his losing the case?

12. Julie, her relationship with Federico, her son, coming to Rome, the plans, the reconciliation - and the opening of the film seeing them ten years later still together, the son grown up? The contrast with Charlotte, her disdain and mockery?

13. The family, the images of the mother, the father, the aunt and her hostility towards Riki?

14. Luna, the artist, eccentric, coming into the apartment, meeting Federico, his attraction towards her, their discussions, her work, the pathos of her death?

15. Riki, the Gay Games, the interview about comedies and musicals - and the irony of his death? How did he die, killing himself or not?

16. The overall impact of this film as an exploration of human nature - an extreme situation, somebody wanting to be loved and remembered, a piece of immortality through his films? Achieved with Pla Pla and the documentary?