The New Italian Cinema of Precarity

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A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Alampi, Maria Elena, 1984- author.

Title: The new Italian cinema of precarity / Maria Elena Alampi.

Description: Oxford ; New York : Peter Lang, 2025. | Series: New studies in European cinema, 1661-0261 ; vol no. 26 | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2024060007 (print) | LCCN 2024060008 (ebook) | ISBN 9781803741215 (paperback) | ISBN 9781803741222 (ebook) | ISBN 9781803741239 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Precarious employment in motion pictures. | Human security in motion pictures. | Sex role in motion pictures. | Race in motion pictures. | Motion pictures--Italy--History. | LCGFT: Film criticism.

Classification: LCC PN1995.9.P658 A43 2025 (print) | LCC PN1995.9.P658 (ebook) | DDC 791.43/6553--dc23/eng/20250101

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2024060007

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2024060008

Cover image by Pierre-Yves Guillon - www.pierreyvesguillon.com

Cover design by Peter Lang Group AG

ISSN 1661-0261

ISBN 978-1-80374-121-5 (Print)

ISBN 978-1-80374-122-2 (E-PDF)

ISBN 978-1-80374-123-9 (E-PUB)

DOI 10.3726/b20619

© 2025 Peter Lang Group AG, Lausanne

Published by Peter Lang Ltd, Oxford, United Kingdom

info@peterlang.com - www.peterlang.com

Maria Elena Alampi has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Author of this Work.

All rights reserved.

All parts of this publication are protected by copyright.

Any utilisation outside the strict limits of the copyright law, without the permission of the publisher, is forbidden and liable to prosecution.

This applies in particular to reproductions, translations, microfilming, and storage and processing in electronic retrieval systems.

This publication has been peer reviewed.

To Adelaide, Mimmo, Pierre-Yves and Nora

Contents

List of Figures

Acknowledgements

Introduction

CHAPTER 1
Portraits of Precarity in Italian Cinema: Unravelling the Collective Italian Sentiment

CHAPTER 2
The Use of Humour in Comedies about Precarity

CHAPTER 3
White Heterosexual Masculinity: The Precarious Characters of Edoardo Leo as Case Studies

CHAPTER 4
White Heterosexual Femininity: The Precarious Characters of Paola Cortellesi as Case Studies

CHAPTER 5
LGBTQ+ Representations in the Cinema of Precarity

CHAPTER 6
Immigrant and G2 Citizens in Cinema on Precarity

CONCLUSION
What Do These Characters Have in Common?

Filmography

Bibliography

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

Figures

Fig. 1: San Precario (Santino [holy card]). Designed by Chainworkers.org CreW and inspired by the work of the artist Chris Woods. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. Reproduced here with permission from San Precario.org.

Fig. 2: Examples of memes circulating on Italian social media on Workers’ Day, 1 May 2021.

Fig. 3: The representation of “italgia” and public employees in Quo vado.

Fig. 4: Checco acting as a mammone.

Fig. 5: Both Checco in Quo vado and Nino (played by Nino Manfredi) in Pane e cioccolata dye their hair blond in an attempt to integrate abroad.

Fig. 6: Salvo extends his welcome to his relatives by using Valentino’s degree certificate as a makeshift serving tray.

Fig. 7: The elderly attempting to pilfer the hidden sweets stored above the wardrobe.

Fig. 8: The young men’s attempts to flirt with older women and the subsequent transformation of the elderly women, now behaving like teenagers.

Fig. 9: Salvo and Valentino seek a recommendation from the dead politician La Duca.

Fig. 10: Laura hidden in the bathroom.

Fig. 11: Pietro falls asleep while his partner is speaking to him.

Fig. 12: 1. Ivano in Viaggi di nozze; 2. Enzo in Un sacco bello; 3. Oscar in Troppo forte; 4. Cesare in Fratelli d’Italia.

Fig. 13: Examples of masculine fashion from Italian TV programmes and football players.

Fig. 14: Fausto.

Fig. 15: 1. Ivano in Viaggi di nozze; 2. Fausto in Noi e la Giulia.

Fig. 16: Eva’s hefty earnings as an escort allow her to enjoy a very high standard of living, in a house with a view of the Colosseum.

Fig. 17: Alice during her professional photo-shoot.

Fig. 18: Some of the scenes with Alice and her clients.

Fig. 19: Paolo and Mia escaping from a bridal shop in Naples.

Fig. 20: Mia and Paolo play with make-up at night.

Fig. 21: Paolo, with his feet in the sea, reflecting before adopting Italia.

Fig. 22: Peppe does physical exercises during the dinner.

Fig. 23: Scenes in which Silvia has to have a drink every time her brother touches his back, because Alessia looks at her.

Fig. 24: From left: Caterina, Maria, Anna and Chicca.

Fig. 25: The film poster for Gli ultimi saranno ultimi.

Fig. 26: Pietro in Smetto; Serena in Scusate; and Phaim and Asia in Bangla.

Fig. 27: Salvo and Valentino in Andiamo.

Fig. 28: The scene in which Bogdana admits to spilling fruit juice on Andrea’s girlfriend’s computer.

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to a great number of people who have supported my book in different ways and have made my research an extremely valuable experience.

My primary thanks go to Dr Charlotte Ross, who has constantly given me the courage to face difficulties during my academic path. She is an incredible scholar and amazing human being, a model of great academic competence and wisdom. She has always given me both inspiration and academic guidance. It was a privilege and an honour to be supervised by her during my PhD, upon which this book is based.

Additionally, I extend my gratitude to Prof. Rob Stone, my PhD co-supervisor, who was essential in shaping the approach to world cinema I use in this book. Welcoming me from the first moment at University of Birmingham, I have greatly enjoyed sharing ideas, methodologies and approaches. Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to thank B-Film: the Birmingham Centre for Film Studies, together with Dr Andrew Watts and Luis Freijo who made me feel part of the group and encouraged my contributions.

Thanks to the AHRC-funded project A Girl’s Eye View, without which this book would not have been possible. The team’s unwavering support was fundamental to me. I will be forever grateful to Prof. Danielle Hipkins for her guidance and inspiration in postfeminist studies. Her patience and feedback on my work in progress have been invaluable. Her scholarly expertise and excellence have consistently illuminated new perspectives in the field, enriching my understanding and shaping the trajectory of my research. I am truly grateful for her unwavering support and mentorship throughout my academic journey. Additionally, I am deeply grateful to Prof. Romana Andò and Dr Leonardo Campagna from Sapienza University of Rome for their teamwork throughout these years. They generously spent time exchanging feedback and theories, offering their expert knowledge in ways that have been invaluable to me.

Special thanks to the University of Exeter, particularly the Modern Languages and Film and Television departments, for their unwavering support and assistance. I am grateful for everything they provided to fulfil my needs.

Special thanks are owed to Dr Clelia Boscolo, whose invaluable support were instrumental in shaping both this thesis and book. Her assistance has been truly invaluable.

I extend my heartfelt gratitude to Peter Lang for selecting me as the Runner-up in Literature & Culture in the 2022 Peter Lang Emerging Scholars Competition in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. I am especially thankful to Laurel Plapp for her support in bringing this book to fruition.

I am grateful to Prof. Clodagh Brook, who was the first to recognise the scholarly potential of my argument. It was an honour to meet her, and I will always be thankful that she selected my project and was the first to believe in my research. I will never forget this and I hope our paths cross again.

I would like to extend my special thanks to the film directors, screenwriters and producers who showed their support from the beginning: Giambattista Avellino, Massimiliano Bruno, Michele e Mirko Geria, Alessandro Giuggioli, Riccardo Milani, Fabio Mollo, Silvia Novelli and Milena Paulon from BADhOLE Video. I had the opportunity to travel through Rome, attend a film shoot and have insightful conversations with them. Thank you very much for your time and assistance.

I was also lucky to meet Dr Francesco Sticchi with whom I am building the Cinematic Precarity Research Network. He has provided me with the support I needed along with precious suggestions. Thanks to all the members for their amazing studies and research about the topic of precarity worldwide, which have opened new reflections and horizons for me.

I feel immensely blessed to have benefited from the wisdom and generosity of several incredibly intelligent and supportive individuals. I extend my sincere thanks to Prof. Catherine O’Rawe, whose feedback as my external examiner proved invaluable. I am also grateful to Prof. Paolo Chirumbolo, Prof. Fabio Cuzzola, Prof. Jonathan Hiller, Prof. Nines Ferrer Plaza, Prof. Giuseppe Lombardo and Prof. Jean-Paul Russo. Their guidance and teachings have left an indelible mark on my life.

I would also thank the College of Arts and Law at University of Birmingham for supporting me as an International PhD Student and the amazing campus will always have a place in my heart. I would also express my gratitude to the Italian Studies-Modern Languages Department at University of Birmingham. To my dearest colleagues: Dr Anna Lisa Somma, Dr Lauren Jones for her valuable help, Dr Maria Del Buono, Dr Elisa Saturno Paasche.

I have relied on the kindness of many other people, too numerous to list here. I would like to extend my thanks to the following: Dr Nella Salvadori for her unwavering presence and support., Adele Bellia for being always there, Dr Giada Diano for her support at the beginning of this adventure, Dr Marta Arcovito for her friendship, Dr Gaetano Mangiola for his invaluable advice on managing stress.

This dissertation would have been difficult to write without the unending support of my dear friends. We have gone to cinema clubs together since we were teenagers, together we watched the films analysed in this book for the first time in cinemas, they gave me suggestions about films to watch, we exchanged ideas and opinions, and their lives inspired me in this book.

My heartfelt gratitude goes to my mother Adelaide, who passed away just days before witnessing the culmination of my PhD journey and the creation of this book. She was always there to encourage me and push me beyond my fears. I am certain that she would have been overjoyed to read this book.

Thanks to my inspiration, Mimmo, my father, who despite his Southern obsession for the “posto fisso” [permanent public job], supports me with all possible means.

Finally, I want to express my deepest gratitude to my husband, Pierre-Yves who is one of my greatest supporters. His unwavering encouragement and celebration of all my achievements along the way have meant the world to me. Thank you for always being there.

Introduction

I have decided to begin this book with a brief preamble about my personal journey, which began when I was a student and subsequently evolved when I became a postgraduate woman hailing from the southern regions of Italy, during an era marked by precarity. My rationale for embarking on this narrative journey is to establish an epistemological feminist standpoint rooted in my personal perspective.¹ I believe that using my own experiences as a foundation for my research can provide valuable insights into the contemporary condition of precarity in Italy, which may help us to understand it. Furthermore, it firmly lays the groundwork for the analysis of the fictional characters examined in this book.

In 2014, when I proposed a research project on the representation of precarity in contemporary Italian cinema to the University of Birmingham, the concept was significant in Italy, especially in the southern and central regions, but not well known in the United Kingdom.