Great Dictators

In twenty-one separate interviews — two with director Bernardo Bertolucci — Angela Baldassarre sheds light on what motivates film-makers in their work. Focusing on Italian directors as well as American directors of Italian descent, The Great Dictators — collected over the course of six years — unearths a variety of personalities and dreams. Roberto Benigni talks about his award-winning Life Is Beautiful; Al Pacino reflects on his directorial debut, Looking for Richard; Don Coscarelli enjoys newfound popularity with Phantasm: Oblivion; Gabriele Salvatores is modestly pleased with Mediterraneo; Dario Argento keeps the horror alive with The Stendhal Syndrome; the late Franco Brusati can't get over Lo Zio Indegno's sleazy translation; Giuseppe Tornatore turns his nose up to Italian audiences with Everybody's Fine; Maurizio Nichetti falls in love with Luna e l'altra; and Gianni Amelio dissects Italy's morality in Lamerica. Plus Leone Pompucci, Anthony Minghella, Michele Soavi, Michael Corrente, Nanni Moretti, Richard LaGravanese, Greg Mottola, Mimmo Calopresti, Stanley Tucci, Steve Buscemi and Tom DiCillo. Angela Baldassarre was born in Toronto, Canada. She is the movie critic for Tandem, Scene, Menz, Access, and Word magazines. She has reviewed for Variety, The Globe & Mail, Entertainment Weekly and a number of TV shows. She is the Vice-President of the Toronto Film Critics Association and, as a member of the International Federation of International Film Critics, she has sat as a juror at film festivals in Moscow, Chicago, Amsterdam and Toronto.