It is pleasant to see Carlo Mazzacurati, one of Italy's finest director, finally return to the artistic strength and depth of character or his early works such as "Notte Italiana". Set in a small northern Italian town whose solitude and cold it reflects so powerfully, the movie beautifully depicts a story of tragic humanity with characters mastered with excellence by three newcomers, among whom Valentina Lodovini emerges as a promising new actress. Likely the best Italian movie of the year, and beautifully photographed, "La Giusta Distanza" was greeted with enthusiasm by audiences at the Rome Cinema Festival with its story of passion and racial and social integration.

This drama is set in the northeast Italian province, a location the director Mazzacurati usually used as a background for his movies. It's the story of a young and attractive elementary school teacher Mara, who is relocated to a little town in the north of Italy. The initial plot is predictable since it carries out with the reactions of a small community to the arrival of the new teacher. In particular some characters stand out as the young Giovanni, who has a big passion for journalism and who starts out by writing small articles for a local newspaper; the rich entrepreneur who is at the center of the social life of the town; the Tunisian mechanic Hassan; who has a love story with Mara. The picture of the Italian provincial life is quite realistic but what really surprised me in a positive way was the unexpected noir turn the movie takes at the end and for which the movie deserves to be watched.

The best Italian films almost always have a strong sense of landscape. And this is no exception. The place, which is probably in the province of Rovigo, along the river Po, is beautifully evoked by Mazzacurati. The story begins as a chronicle of everyday life in a very small town in Veneto (the area is called Polesine and it is near the Po delta). The only small event is the arrival of a new, young teacher in the local primary school. But this small event triggers other events, and somewhat disturbs the drowsy life of the place, peacefully drowned in the mists and the fog of the Po valley. But then, when 3/4 of the story have lapsed, there is a jolt, and the film turns into a crime story when the teacher is killed. It seems that everything is clear, and the culprit is quickly identified, arrested and sentenced--but things are not what they seem.

I can imagine how a Hollywood director might have managed this story. Thanks god the movie wasn't shot in Hollywood. It works perfectly the way it is: with its slow rhythm and its minimal but elegant directing style. It also manages to show viewers a tranche de vie of today's provincial Italy, and say something clever and not at all foregone about the difficult integration of immigrants.

All in all, one of the best Italian movies of the new century.