It’s the Italian film that has sparked debate about domestic violence and the epidemic of men killing women in its home country. Despite being a period film shot in black and white, There’s Still Tomorrow was not just a box office hit, it sold more tickets in Italian cinemas than Barbie last year. That surprised even Paola Cortellesi, a popular comic actress who co-wrote, directs and stars in the film.
“We are counting victims of femicide every 72 hours on average”: Paola Cortellesi at the Italian film awards in May. Credit: Getty Images “At the end of the first week, my friends all over Italy sent me pictures of queues outside cinemas,” she says from Rome. “That’s something that hasn’t happened for years.
It’s been bigger than I could ever imagine.” That success reflects the humour and warm heart of a comic drama about a downtrodden woman, Delia (Cortellesi), living in Rome just after World War II, that was shot to look like black and white classics of Italian neorealism such as Rome Open City and Bicycle Thieves . Married to abusive husband Ivano (Valerio Mastandrea), Delia works at menial part-time jobs while looking after her three ungrateful children and misogynist bedridden father-in-law.
Rather than showing violence explicitly, Cortellesi uses humour: a scene where Ivano hits Delia, for example, is played as a stylish dance to a song about undying love. The other reason the film has become a cultural phenomenon – overtaking Life Is Beautiful to .