Il Postino
Mario, a shy postman on a quiet Italian island, finds his world widened when exiled Chilean poet Pablo Neruda becomes his only delivery stop. As Neruda introduces him to metaphors and the magic of language, Mario discovers confidence, purpose, and a new way to pursue the woman he loves. What begins as an unlikely friendship becomes a gentle, life-changing awakening.
DIRECTOR
Michael Radford
Actors
1h 48m • Rated TBC • Romantic Drama • Italy (1994)
Massimo Troisi • Maria Grazia Cucinotta • Philippe Noiret • Renato Scarpa
Soon, Mario’s good-natured, yet naive questions opens the door to an unexpected friendship. The power of language and poetry expands Mario’s horizons. Troisi’s depiction of Mario’s uneducated but intellectual spirit is drawn with such tenderness and humour that it is both profound and hilarious in the same moments. Mario soon wishes to use the newly discovered power of words to woo the beautiful Beatrice. The uplifting and allegorical simplicity of Il Postino disguises its beauty and its weight. This is a film that can truly be called ‘Cinema’ and deserves to be seen on the big screen.
CRITICS ROUNDUP
Poetry in motion; tender and timeless
Without any exaggeration, Il Postino is one of Italy’s most beloved films of the last 40 years. Appealing for its delightfully laid-back philosophising, disarming charm and the restrained performance by the comic genius Massimo Troisi. Set in the 1950s on the idyllic Phlegraean Island of Procida, off the coast of Naples, it is a world left behind by the progress of mainland Italy. Nobel Prize-winning Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (played by veteran French actor Philippe Noiret) is exiled to the island for his political convictions. Mario, the seemingly guileless postman, is intrigued as he delivers stacks of fan mail to the famous poet.