Butterfly L’Attesa

Tonino De Bernardi previously filmed Greek tragedies by Sophocles (Elettra, 1987) and by Euripides (Medea Miracle, 2007). Butterfly Waiting is a free-thinking adaptation of Puccini’s opera Madame Butterfly, shot in and around his own house in the Italian region of Piemonte. In the words of the director, it is quest for the identity of the mysterious Madame Butterfly. While the farmers till the land, she waits in distress for her American love Pinkerton, who promised to be reunited with her.
De Bernardi’s cinematographic language is very unconventional, as in all his films. There’s hardly a plot and the acting looks unnatural. Instead of that, De Bernardi creates an exciting musical universe in which Madame Butterfly sings an aria by Puccini – ‘One fine day we will see’ – and villagers listen to opera music while enjoying a snack. The old experimental master continues to push back frontiers.