“Things will have to change in order that they remain the same.” This famous quote by Don Fabrizio, prince of Salina, played magnificently by Burt Lancaster in Luchino Visconti’s epic drama “The Lepard” (1963), is often cited by Italian journalists, literary critics and politics. Based on the novel “Il Gattopardo” by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa (1896-1957), Visconti’s masterpiece depicts the decline of a noble Sicilian family. The patriarch, Fabrizio, Prince of Salina, witnesses the transfer of power in Sicily from the old Bourbon aristocracy to the new Kingdom of Italy.
“The Lepard”, one of the most epic movies of all time, was awarded the Palme d’Or for Best Picture in 1963. Visconti and part of this cast were also nominated for the Golden Globe Awards. The all-star cast included Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale. In 2010, Gucci and the Film Foundation led by Martin Scorsese restored “Il Gattopardo”.
When Netflix announced the remake of “The Lepard” and presented the first trailer, the Italian Netflix audience was quite critical towards the aspirations of such a remake. They wrote that it was impossible to surpass a masterpiece like “Il Gattopardo”. “Imagine making a remake of Gone With The Wind in the States. Nobody would dare to do that in the States.”
They also criticized the cast, especially Saul Nanni, 26, who plays Tancredi, originally played by Alain Delon, one of the most critically acclaimed actors of his generation, and Deva Cassel, 20, who plays Angelica, a role originally played by Claudia Cardinale. The only actor who wasn’t criticized was Kim Rossi Stuart, 55, who follows in Burt Lancaster’s footsteps and plays the Prince of Salina, the patriarch.
The six-episode series, is produced by Fabrizio Donvito, Daniel Campos Pavoncelli, Marco Cohen, Benedetto Habib, and Alessandro Mascheroni for Indiana Production and by Will Gould and Frith Tiplady for Moonage Pictures, and was filmed in Palermo, Syracuse, Catania, and Rome.
(This article is still under construction and will be finished tomorrow.)
Photos: Courtesy of Netflix / Lucia Iuorio
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