Visionary filmmaker Paolo Benvenuti, collaborating here with his wife Paola Baroni, fascinatingly employs elements of pure cinema in this historical depiction of musical maestro Puccini and his possible extramarital dalliance with a housemaid. In 1909, the great composer is working on La fanciulla del West in his Tuscan villa in Torre del Lago when whispers start circulating— by the musician’s stepdaughter – of his supposed inappropriate behavior. As the story unfolds, all dialogue is heard in muffled tones or through letters read in voiceover as visual representation and musical moments take center stage. Based on recently discovered historical material and employing actual footage of Puccini from 1915, this film richly and indelibly reinvents the musical biopic.

Written by Paola Baroni, Paolo Benvenuti. Photographed by Giovanni Battista Marras. With Tania Squillario, Riccardo J. Moretti, Giovanna Daddi, Debora Mattiello (84 min. Adriana Chiesa Enterprises).