Dogman

Matteo Garrone wrote a first version 12 years before the Cannes prize, titled L’amico dell’uomo, and took it to Roberto Benigni, his choice for the lead; Benigni said no. At Cannes in 2018 it was Benigni who handed Marcello Fonte the best actor award. Garrone wanted a comic register, especially in the first half, and sees Marcello as a modern Buster Keaton. Fonte disagrees, calling himself very dramatic and not funny at all. The split leaves two workable readings of the same scenes. The setting is not Rome. Shooting took place at Villaggio Coppola, part of Castel Volturno in Caserta province; the accent and the beach make some viewers read it as Ostia. At Cannes the canine cast took the Palm Dog. The film won 3 European Film Awards: actor, costume design, make-up and hair. At the 2019 David di Donatello it took 9, including best film and director, yet best actor went to Alessandro Borghi, not Fonte. Italy sent it to the 91st Academy Awards; it was not nominated. A good fit if you want the line between victim and accomplice blurred to the end rather than settled early. Not for you if a dog shut in a freezer during the burglary is more than you want on screen, though Marcello goes back for it.