Based on Across the River and Into the Trees by Ernest Hemingway, the last complete novel published during the writer’s lifetime, the film captures a fleeting moment of immortality when time stands still. The story contains the great themes of the American writer, winner of the 1954 Nobel Prize for Literature: love, war, youth, the passing of the years.
Directed by Paula Ortiz and produced by Tribune Picture, the film was shot almost entirely in and around Venice. It was supported by the Veneto Film Commission and received a €1.3 million contribution from the Regione del Veneto.
Scenes were shot in Friuli at Villa Kechler De Asarta, in Fraforeano di Ronchis (Udine). The set for the headquarters of the post WWII Anglo-American forces in Trieste was located here – where Hemingway himself actually stayed at the end of the 1940s – and the film has lead character Richard Cantwell (Liev Schreiber) consult a heart specialist. A vintage car passes along the strada Napoleonica, outside Trieste.
The Grand Canal, Rialto bridge, Santa Maria della Salute and the canals that branch out like arteries into the Venice lagoon, make the city and its alleys a unique vision for the Colonel, who agrees to be accompanied to the Gritti Palace by Renata Contarini (Matilda De Angelis), whom he initially mistakes for a taxi driver. The Gothic facade of the palace, in the San Marco district, right in front of the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, seems to emerge directly from the waters of the Grand Canal. This elegant hotel was dear to Hemingway who often stayed there, and has also hosted other famous names, like Woody Allen, who shot scenes of Everyone Says I Love You with Julia Roberts here.
After leaving Cantwell at the Gritti, Renata continues along the Grand Canal to the Palazzo Contarini Polignac, in Dorsoscuro, which she enters. Renata is engaged to Antonio, but appears unsure about their commitment. The two are looking out from Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo when he asks her why she is not wearing her engagement ring: before showing the couple, the camera lingers on the sequence of single-lancet windows and the circular tower with a spiral staircase of the facade that overlooks the Corte del Maltese.
Matilda De Angelis and Liev Schreiber in piazza San Marco, Venice
Renata and the Colonel end up meeting several times: on one occasion, they have dinner in Campiello dei Miracoli which overlooks the back of the Church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli.
That evening, Renata offers to be Richard's guide to the most magical corners of the city; after visiting a convent that houses paintings belonging to her family, she takes the Colonel to admire piazza San Marco and its spectacular Basilica.
"The film portrays Venice and its beauty" says Paula Ortiz. "It's a beautiful walk in the Venetian night in the post-war period: an anti-war story following the path of death, life and beauty, in a cinematic experience – a necessity for today".
Matilda De Angelis crosses the porticoes of Palazzo Ducale, Venice
Piazza San Marco takes on a different appearance during the day, when the Colonel and Sergeant Jackson (Josh Hutcherson), who follows him like a shadow, spot the beautiful image of Renata crossing the porticoes of Palazzo Ducale to reach them.
Venice offers a glimpse of the interior of the Church of San Francesco della Vigna in Calle San Francesco: the protagonists of the scene are Laura Morante as Countess Contarini and Giulio Berruti as Antonio, her daughter's boyfriend.
Scenes were also shot in the Treviso area. On the car journey taking him to Venice, the Colonel stops to admire the Abbey of Sant'Eustachio in Nervesa della Battaglia. Standing in front of the ruins, he wonders how it is possible to bomb such a place (the site, located near the Piave front, was damaged during WWI).
Locations in the city of Treviso included vicolo del Gallo, ponte Buranelli and piazza Rinaldi.
Based on Across the River and Into the Trees by Ernest Hemingway, the last complete novel published during the writer’s lifetime, the film captures a fleeting moment of immortality when time stands still. The story contains the great themes of the American writer, winner of the 1954 Nobel Prize for Literature: love, war, youth, the passing of the years.
Directed by Paula Ortiz and produced by Tribune Picture, the film was shot almost entirely in and around Venice. It was supported by the Veneto Film Commission and received a €1.3 million contribution from the Regione del Veneto.
Scenes were shot in Friuli at Villa Kechler De Asarta, in Fraforeano di Ronchis (Udine). The set for the headquarters of the post WWII Anglo-American forces in Trieste was located here – where Hemingway himself actually stayed at the end of the 1940s – and the film has lead character Richard Cantwell (Liev Schreiber) consult a heart specialist. A vintage car passes along the strada Napoleonica, outside Trieste.
The Grand Canal, Rialto bridge, Santa Maria della Salute and the canals that branch out like arteries into the Venice lagoon, make the city and its alleys a unique vision for the Colonel, who agrees to be accompanied to the Gritti Palace by Renata Contarini (Matilda De Angelis), whom he initially mistakes for a taxi driver. The Gothic facade of the palace, in the San Marco district, right in front of the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, seems to emerge directly from the waters of the Grand Canal. This elegant hotel was dear to Hemingway who often stayed there, and has also hosted other famous names, like Woody Allen, who shot scenes of Everyone Says I Love You with Julia Roberts here.
After leaving Cantwell at the Gritti, Renata continues along the Grand Canal to the Palazzo Contarini Polignac, in Dorsoscuro, which she enters. Renata is engaged to Antonio, but appears unsure about their commitment. The two are looking out from Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo when he asks her why she is not wearing her engagement ring: before showing the couple, the camera lingers on the sequence of single-lancet windows and the circular tower with a spiral staircase of the facade that overlooks the Corte del Maltese.
Matilda De Angelis and Liev Schreiber in piazza San Marco, Venice
Renata and the Colonel end up meeting several times: on one occasion, they have dinner in Campiello dei Miracoli which overlooks the back of the Church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli.
That evening, Renata offers to be Richard's guide to the most magical corners of the city; after visiting a convent that houses paintings belonging to her family, she takes the Colonel to admire piazza San Marco and its spectacular Basilica.
"The film portrays Venice and its beauty" says Paula Ortiz. "It's a beautiful walk in the Venetian night in the post-war period: an anti-war story following the path of death, life and beauty, in a cinematic experience – a necessity for today".
Matilda De Angelis crosses the porticoes of Palazzo Ducale, Venice
Piazza San Marco takes on a different appearance during the day, when the Colonel and Sergeant Jackson (Josh Hutcherson), who follows him like a shadow, spot the beautiful image of Renata crossing the porticoes of Palazzo Ducale to reach them.
Venice offers a glimpse of the interior of the Church of San Francesco della Vigna in Calle San Francesco: the protagonists of the scene are Laura Morante as Countess Contarini and Giulio Berruti as Antonio, her daughter's boyfriend.
Scenes were also shot in the Treviso area. On the car journey taking him to Venice, the Colonel stops to admire the Abbey of Sant'Eustachio in Nervesa della Battaglia. Standing in front of the ruins, he wonders how it is possible to bomb such a place (the site, located near the Piave front, was damaged during WWI).
Locations in the city of Treviso included vicolo del Gallo, ponte Buranelli and piazza Rinaldi.
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Matilda De Angelis, Liev Schreiber - Piazza San Marco, Venice
Copyright: ph: Filippo Ciappi
Matilda De Angelis - Piazza San Marco, Venice
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Massimo Popolizio
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Matilda De Angelis, Liev Schreiber
Copyright: ph: Filippo Ciappi
Laura Morante, Matilda De Angelis
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Liev Schreiber, Alessandro Parrello - Gritti Palace, Venice
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Liev Schreiber, Sabrina Impacciatore, Maurizio Lombardi - Gritti Palace, Venice
Copyright: ph: Filippo Ciappi
Copyright: ph: Filippo Ciappi
Matilda De Angelis - Palazzo Ducale, Venice
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Josh Hutcherson - Piazza San Marco, Venice
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Liev Schreiber
Copyright: ph: Filippo Ciappi
Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston
Post-World War II. US Army Colonel Richard Cantwell, a war hero still haunted by the ghosts of the front, faces the news of his terminal illness with stoic nonchalance. He decides to spend his weekend in quiet solitude and commissions a military driver to take him on what will probably be his last duck hunt and a visit to his old haunts in Venice. As Cantwell's plans begin to unravel, a chance meeting with a young countess ignites the hope of renewal.
