# Vermiglio (film)

Vermiglio is a 2024 drama film written, co-produced and directed by Maura Delpero. The film premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival, where it won the Grand Jury Prize. It was designated as the Italian entry for Best International Feature Film at the 97th Academy Awards.

## Plot

1944, Vermiglio, a remote mountain village. The arrival of Pietro, a deserter, into the family of the local teacher, and his love for the teacher's eldest daughter, will change the course of everyone's life.

## Cast

* Giuseppe De Domenico as Pietro Riso
* Tommaso Ragno as Cesare Graziadei
* Martina Scrinzi as Lucia Graziadei
* Roberta Rovelli as Adele
* Carlotta Gamba as Virginia
* Orietta Notari as Zia Cesira
* Sara Serraiocco as Anna Pennisi

## Production

Principal photography started on 28 August 2023, and shootings wrapped in December. The film was shot between the Vermiglio, Carciato and Comasine towns in the Trentino-Alto Adige region. It is produced by Cinedora (Italy), Charades (France), and Versus (Belgium). Delpero decided to make the film after her father's death as a way to help ensure that the traditions in which he had grown up were not lost, including conducting many interviews with local people during pre-production.

## Release

The film world-premiered in competition at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. It made its North American premiere at the 49th Toronto International Film Festival.
It was featured in the Limelight section of the 54th International Film Festival Rotterdam to be screened in February 2025.

## Reception
### Critical response

The film received general positive reviews by critics. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 93% of 41 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.0/10. The website's consensus reads: "Painterly and patient, Vermiglio carefully observes its provincial milieu to such absorbing effect that audiences will feel like they've become a part of the community." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 84 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Jessica Kiang of Variety affirmed that "economy" is the watchword of "deceptively formalist" film, that results from "deceptively formalist" direction, editing, musical compositions to costumes, contributing "to a fascinating narrative remove, which is belied by the close-up clarity of the imagery". Kiang wrote that although the plot is set in the past, it "operates like a future family secret playing out in the present tense" through " the spirit of the mothers and the sisters and the daughters who came before and after, and who trusted the imperious mountains to keep their secrets".

#### Italian critics

The film received favorable reviews from Italian film critics. Mattia Pasquini of Ciak wrote that like the previous film Maternal the screenplay is about the mother-child relationship set on an "extremely refined framework, both linguistically, stylistically and narratively coherent and homogeneous". Federico Pontiggia of Cinematografo stated that the film draws on "[Delpero's] prior documentary experience with greater ambition, free will and calmness," observing that "the direction of actors is excellent, the anti-spectacle concept is cohesive and confident, the poetry of war and peace is marvelous. Here we have a consummate auteur: Maura Delpero."

### Accolades

| Award | Year | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
| Venice Film Festival | 3 September 2024 | Golden Lion | Maura Delpero | Nominated |
| Venice Film Festival | 3 September 2024 | Grand Jury Prize | Maura Delpero | Won |
| Venice Film Festival | 3 September 2024 | Sorriso Diverso Venezia Award for Best Italian Film | Maura Delpero | Won |
| Venice Film Festival | 3 September 2024 | NUOVOIMAIE Talent Award for Best New Young Actress | Martina Scrinzi | Won |
| Venice Film Festival | 3 September 2024 | La Pellicola d'Oro Award for Best Chief Electrician | Kristian De Martiis | Won |
| Chicago International Film Festival | 27 October 2024 | Gold Hugo | Vermiglio | Won |
| Camerimage | 23 November 2024 | Golden Frog for Best Cinematography | Mikhail Krichman | Nominated |
| Gotham Awards | 2 December 2024 | Best International Feature | Maura Delpero, Francesca Andreoli, Santiago Fondevila Sance, Leonardo Guerra Seràgnoli | Nominated |
| European Film Awards | 7 December 2024 | European Film | Vermiglio | Nominated |
| European Film Awards | 7 December 2024 | European Director | Maura Delpero | Nominated |
| San Diego Film Critics Society | 9 December 2024 | Best Foreign Language Film | Vermiglio | Nominated |
| Golden Globe Awards | 5 January 2025 | Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language | Vermiglio | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 12 January 2025 | FIPRESCI Prize - Best International Film Feature | Vermiglio | Nominated |
| Palm Springs International Film Festival | 12 January 2025 | Best International Screenplay | Maura Delpero | Won |