Marcello, Marcello

Set in an idyllic Italian fishing village in 1956, this sweet story of young love revolves around a teen boy’s frantic efforts to find a gift for the father of the beautiful young woman he adores.

Cynics will be refused admission to this delightfully sweet, romantic tale. Set in a small Italian fishing village in 1956, it centers on a poor teen boy’s industrious efforts to woo the mayor’s enchanting daughter. As is the town’s tradition, 18-year-old Marcello, sweet-faced and tanned, must offer an acceptable present to the mayor if he hopes to get a date with raven-haired Elena. He decides to present the rooster that wakes him up every morning, but the owner of the rooster wants something in return — some bottles of limoncello from the mysterious Palmieri sisters, who in turn want their unworn wedding dress still sitting in a shop years after being spurned…and the dressmaker wants something, too. As Marcello races through the town franticly trying to fulfill a round-robin list of requests that seems to involve the entire village, time is running out and competition for the young lass is heating up. This is a terrifically and innocently romantic story of young love, told against the backdrop of a pre-modernized world where the pursuit of love reigns supreme. (Italian with English subtitles) — Raymond Murray