“Angels and Demons” Now Filming in Rome

With the great success of the film adaptation of Dan Brown’s The DaVinci Code, it was a forgone conclusion that Brown’s other book, Angels and Demons, this one centered on Vatican intrigue, would be made into a film. In fact, as Trovacinema.it reports, director Ron Howard is filming in Rome this week. Actor Tom Hanks (does his hair look any …

Receive a FREE DVD of an Italian Film Classic!

One of my favorite things to do is to give away new travel books or DVDs related to Italy. Well, here we go again… This month three films by Italy’s Taviani brothers are being released on DVD for the North American market. Don’t know the Tavianis? Well here’s how The New York Times described them: “Before the Coens, the Hugheses, …

Movie Travel: Italian Monastery from “The English Patient”

When director Anthony Mingella set sight on the former Benedictine monastery of Sant’Anna in Camprena, a little town outside Pienza, he knew he had found the perfect place to shoot the scenese where a convalescing English patient reveals his tragic past to his nurse in the film The English Patient. The interior features frescoes by Sodoma (1477-1549). Guests can now …

Naples: “Scarface” Mansion to Become Community Clinic

Talk about rubbing salt in the wounds of Mafia member Walter Schiavone, who was arrested for murder in 1999, Italian authorities have decided to turn his “Scarface-esque” mansion into a physical rehabilitation center for Naples residents. According to The Guardian , Schiavone was so obsessed with the character of Scarface that he built a $ 2.5-million dollar replica of the …

Get in The Travel Mood: Watch a Clip of “La Dolce Vita”

If you’re counting the days until you arrive in Rome or if you’re just dreaming about the the city, you might want to get a copy of Federico Fellini’s classic film La Dolce Vita (1961). Considered one of the best movies of all time, the movie follows the “sweet life” of a tabloid journalist (Marcello Mastroianni) who covers the glitzy …