Zloveto – broadcast tonight at 9.30pm on Rai 1 – it is a nostalgic and gentle comedy direct, in her debut behind the cameraby the actor Neri Marcorè. The story, set in Milan in the 60s, is that of a young and calm accountant harassed by his boss who will find redemption thanks to the advice of an old and talented football goalkeeper.
Zamora: the plot of the film by and with Neri Marcoré tonight 14 January on Rai 1 and RaiPlay
Italy, 60s. Walter Vismara (Alberto Paradossi) is a thirty-year-old man who works as an accountant in a small factory in Vigevano. When the company he works for closes without warning, Walter finds a new job at another company in Milan where he is under the direct supervision of his boss, Cavalier Tosetto (Giovanni Storti). The latter has a fixation for football and forces employees to compete in a football competition once a week and which sees the classic challenge between “bachelors and married men”.
Walter, who doesn’t particularly like football, immediately lines up in goal but his lack of talent leads the engineer Gusperti (Walter Leonardi) to targeting him, sarcastically nicknamed him “Zamora”. A reference to famous Spanish goalkeeper of the 30’s. Walter is thus forced to endure humiliation of Gusperti both on the pitch and in the office, which will lead him to ask for the help of Giorgio Cavazzoni (Neri Marcorè), a talented former goalkeeper who begins to train him. In parallel, Walter falls in love with Ada (Marta Gastini) but the love between the two young people appears immediately very complicated from office dynamics.
Giacomo Poretti, Neri Marcoré and Giovanni Storti in a scene from the film “Zamora”. (01 Distribution)
An “old-fashioned” comedy inspired by the name of a legendary footballer (but it’s not a true story)
Freely based on the novel of the same name by Roberto Perrone, Zamora it is a film from times gone by, inspired by Italian comedy by Risi and Monicelli from the 60s, and that favor a calm pace and a classic narrative. For his directorial debut, Neri Marcorè opts for an almost invisible styleleaving room for the psychology of the characters and their fragilities, without ever exceeding. Permeated by a gentle and almost melancholic comedythe film thus avoids the cynicism of contemporary comedy, focusing against the trend on empathy and humanity.
Metaphor of the fear of exposing oneself and failingin the film football is never the real center of the storydespite the plot, and Marcorè is above all interested in it reflect on the world of work, showing company dynamics paternalistic and subtly oppressive. Despite some steps are predictable and not very courageous, Zamora – the title is inspired by the strongest Spanish goalkeeper ever – And a delightfully retro work. The film is nostalgic without ever being mannerist finally confirms the versatility of Neri Marcorè’s all-round talent. Much loved face not only of cinema but also of much television and theatre
The cast of Zamora: from the protagonist Alberto Paradossi to Giacomo Poretti and Giovanni Storti
Young Tuscan actor born in 1989, Alberto Paradossi gets his first major role in 2020 in Gianni Amelio’s film Hammametin which he plays Bettino Craxi’s son. In the same year he acted in the TV film Allows? Alberto Sordiwhere he plays Federico Fellini, and since 2022 he has been in the cast of the Rai 1 TV series Studio Battaglia. In March, Alberto will return to the cinema with the film The eyes of othersinspired by the famous Casati Stampa crime and starring Jasmine Trinca.
The cast of the film also features two much-loved faces of Italian comedy: Giacomo Poretti and Giovanni Stortihistoric members of the trio Aldo, Giovanni and Giacomo. In a 2023 interview given to The Hollywood ReporterMarcoré described the choice of the film’s cast in this way: «I had some names, we had already imagined them during the writing phase, like Giovanni Storti and Pia Lanciotti, while I chose others through an audition. In my own small way, it’s a battle I’ve always fought Don’t get lazy in always choosing the same people».