September

Production
GROENLANDIA, RAI CINEMA
Release
2022
Category
Movies
Cast
  • Fabrizio Bentivoglio
  • Barbara Ronchi
  • Thony
  • Andrea Sartoretti
  • Tesa Litvan
  • Margherita Rebeggiani
  • Luca Nozzoli
Plot

One day in September three characters realize that their lives are not what they dreamed and that happiness is far away, but still possible.
It happens on a September day that three characters realize that the life they are living is not the one they dreamed of. That happiness is a far away idea but still possible.
When Maria returns from summer vacation, she finally catches the attention of the boy she likes, who through Sergio, a schoolmate, asks her if she wants to sleep with him.

Although not the most romantic proposal, Maria accepts it immediately, only to fall into a panic. Sergio offers his help and they spend a whole afternoon together, discovering a chemistry between them. Meanwhile, a visit to the doctor makes Sergio’s mother, Francesca, radically change her perspective on her life. She gets closer to her friend Debora, with whom a new and more authentic bond is developing, unlike the one Francesca has allowed herself to have until now.
She mentions it to her physician, Guglielmo, during a chance meeting at the bar. Since his wife left him, Guglielmo has lived as if trapped inside a bubble of apathy in which the only real contact seems to be with Ana, a young prostitute he meets regularly; a direct and pragmatic woman who has never stopped dreaming, in spite of the difficulties that she has encountered in life. The news of Ana’s affair with a young neighbor and Francesca’s confession make Guglielmo see things differently, jolting him out of his stupor.

By the screenwriter of Husband and Wife and An Almost Ordinary Summer, a collective tale that explores human relations, our deepest nature, and the search for a more authentic connection with people.

Screenplay by Giulia Louise Steigerwalt
Producer: Matteo Rovere

LYNN PROJECT

happiness is far away, but still possible

Director’s Notes

September tells three apparently separate stories that, although barely connected, affect each other at an unconscious level: the discovery of sex by two teenagers, the relationship between a man and a prostitute, and the friendship between two women, who become aware of feeling something more for each other. Running through all of these stories is the common search for a more authentic connection.

The protagonists are stuck living lives where they forgot what it means to be happy until a wake up call puts them face to face with the deepest and more authentic part of themselves. They are thus forced to choose between carrying on living apathetically, or changing their lives.

Maria and Sergio’s story is apparently about sexual education, but it is about something else. On paper, and by way of words and gestures, they scrutinize every detail of the adventure that the girl is preparing for: her first time. Yet, while in the process of ascertaining the “mechanics” of it, something else happens. The two discover what it means to feel at ease with someone, to ‘click’ with someone, opening oneself up completely to another. This sentimental education develops quietly, in the background, as Maria and Sergio continue doing what they think is important, although, perhaps, it is not so important after all.

In the same way, Francesca and Debora’s story appears to be about a marital crisis, while, in reality, it shows the value of care in a relationship. With a good dose of irony, these two women remind us that “another relationship is possible,” where one can love and be loved as she wishes.
Francesca’s experiences echo in the third and final narrative segment, that of Guglielmo and Ana. This story is told through the perspective of Francesca, who has always only wanted to take care of her husband, never expecting to be taken care of in return. In the end, she helps Guglielmo come to terms with the reasons behind the failure of his own marriage and to give a new, different meaning to his relationship with Ana.