Kill, kill, kill ย literally. Filmmaker Michelangelo Antonioniยs I Vinti (ยThe Defeatedย) is a trio of murder stories. The first episode, set in Italy, chronicles a university student who gets into trouble after smuggling cigarettes. The second, shot in France, follows a group of high school students who kill a friend for money. The third, set in England, is the macabre tale of a poet who finds a dead girl and uses her to gain fame. Although the recently deceased Italian director is renowned for his aesthetic contribution to film, I Vinti is one of his lesser known works. The film is playing as part of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houstonยs ยHomage to Antonioni,ย a retrospective of both the directorยs popular and more obscure films.
Other Antonioni films screening today include LยAvventura (ยThe Adventureย), and The Lady without Camellias. Made in 1960, LยAvventura stars Gabriele Ferzetti as a man whose lover has gone missing from their yacht. He goes searching for her accompanied by their friend (Monica Vitti), and the two find themselves falling in love. The Lady Without Camellias features Lucia Bosรฉ as a young Italian woman who wins a beauty contest and then goes on to become a star.
Mon., Sept. 3, 1 p.m.
This article appears in Aug 30 – Sep 5, 2007.