Caterina in the Big City - movie reviews and information

Cultures clash in 'Caterina in the Big City'
by Eleanor Ringel Gillespie

On the surface, "Caterina in the Big City" is like "Mean Girls," Italian-style. But it's much more layered than that. Director Paolo Virzi uses high school as a satiric metaphor — for Italy in general and Rome in particular. Caterina (Alice Teghil, delightful), a happy, enthusiastic 12-year-old, is uprooted from her small seaside town and transported to Rome when her father, Giancarlo (Sergio Castellitto), a pretentious school teacher, finally lands a job in the big city. The move lands Caterina at a posh high school dominated by two warring factions. Read the full review

TO SUM UP
When her parents move from a seaside town in Tuscany to an ailing aunt's apartment in the big city, a 15-year-old girl finds her new private school in rome is a microcosm of the cultural and political divisions of Italian society. Both the revolutionary no-globals and rich conservative kids try to bring the new girl into their sphere of influence.

FILM FACTS ...

Empire Pictures

'Caterina in the Big City'

Director: Paolo Virzi
Starring: Alice Teghil, Sergio Castellitto, Margherita Buy, Antonio Carnevale, Federica Sbrenna
Run time: 106 minutes
Release date: Jan. 1, 2003
Language: Italian with English subtitles
Rating: Not Rated