Martin Eden

          

         This is a throwback to great Italian cinema. The drama is loosely based on the novel by Jack London and is a star making turn for Luca Marinelli. As the title character, Mr. Marinelli brings Mr. Eden to life as a young man determined to become a writer as his way out of poverty and a chance to rise above his station in Italian society.

         A chance meeting with the rich socialite, Elena, played by Jessica Cressy, is love at first sight but to be accepted, Martin must become a member of the bourgeois class he detests. This is at once a love story and a story of social and class struggle in an Italy of an earlier time. It follows Martin's social and political awakening in a compelling way. 

        The direction by Pietro Marcello and cinematography by Alessandro Abate and Francesco Di Giacomo is fantastic, giving the film a visual flair to earlier Italian cinema. The film looks and feels like a product of the 1960's, rather than today. Mr. Marcello enjoys "the close-up", at times having the characters speak directly to the camera or by bringing the camera right up to their expressive faces. He intercuts scenes with metaphors, flashbacks and various archival footage that fill out the film and gives it more depth. 

        The film is in Italian with subtitles and is an Apple+ exclusive.