ANDREA ARCANGELI, PASCUALE PETROLO IN PARTLY CLOUDY WITH SUNNY SPELLSBLURB:
Ermanno and Giacomo, founders of a furniture-manufacturing cooperative in the fictional blue-collar town of Sant’Ugo, discover oil on their factory’s property. Tempted by visions of untold wealth, they are crestfallen to discover just how expensive it will be to extract the black gold. As often happens with the appearance of sudden fortune, divisions erupt—Giacomo wants to invest the money while Ermanno worries about their socialist credibility and the environmental impact drilling may bring. Predominantly a touchingly comic story of two good friends at an impasse, the film is also a clever satire of small-town life and politics. Noted Italian actors Luca Zingaretti and Pasquale Petrolo shine as the two co-op leaders while John Turturro brings an effortless comedic polish to his role as a consulting mining engineer from the US who arrives at the potential oil site with dollar signs in his eyes.
Cloudy with Sunny Spells/Tempo instabile con probabili schiarite, 92 mins., debuted 15 February 2015 (Los Angeles Italian Film Festival); also Bari; Italian theatrical debut 15 Apr. 2015. Screened for this review as part of the San Francisco Film Society's New Italian Cinema series, where it was shown 14 Nov. 2015.