VENICE- After being jointly presented at the 71th Venice International Film Festival and the São Paulo International Film Festival, Alberto De Venezia’s first film, ‘Io È Morto’, is to debut in Italian cinemas on August 31st. The viewers will be presented with an intriguing thriller which tries to blur the line between fantasy and reality, luring them into the former just to catapult them back to the latter, leaving the audience questioning the difference between the two.

 Showing its psychological nature from the onset by displaying Rorschach inkblots, and its religious tones through the biblical names of the protagonists Maria (Giulia Perelli), Giuseppe (Andrea Cocco) and Maddalena (Marina Suma), the plot presents the audience with a question hard to answer: is Maria being helped with her condition, or is she being driven deeper into the depths of her own insanity?

 The introspective voyage on which the characters (and audience) will embark consists of a journey between love and life, lust and loyalty, which will ultimately lead to a dismal ending, namely loneliness for Maria and her ‘inner-self’.

 The music, presented by Louis Siciliano, winner of the 2005 Nastro D’Argento and David di Donatello award nominee, help in creating an atmosphere of mystery throughout the duration of the film, and self-doubt among the audience. Paired with a powerful and enthralling voice-over which raises more questions than it answers, Siciliano's soundtrack mark Maria's unstoppable fall into the web of her own mind. Many questions (if not most) which Io È Morto raises will remain unanswered, and yet, in some ways this adds to the sense of puzzlement De Venezia tried to create, without impeding the development of the storyline.

AG