Sfogliando l'Italia # 17 - English
Among comedians, revolutions and lacework
Per la versione in ITALIANO cliccare QUI
Hello everyone, welcome back to a new issue of Sfogliando l'Italia! If you ended up here by chance, let us introduce ourselves: the one writing is Rossella, editing is done by Alex, and we give you a warm welcome to the bi-weekly newsletter dedicated to Italy, in which I'll tell you curiosities about Italy, recommend films and/or TV series and also things to see and eat in the Bel Paese.
It's September, the cicadas have (finally) almost all gone into hibernation, the days are getting shorter and the cooler weather is approaching... in short, it's the perfect time to start again with our bi-weekly appointment, don't you agree? If you would like to be in our company, today we are going to a small and little-known region (even among Italians): Molise! So come with us to discover curious memes, sprightly ladies and modern art...!
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Get the popcorn ready!
Today's media tip is a bit sui generis, but I have decided that for the next few issues I don't want to suggest detective stories!
If we consider that these, together with medical-themed TV series are the favourite genre of Italians, and that they therefore crowd the TV schedules leaving little room for other products, we are left with only one option where something decent can be found: the comedy genre.
I like to divide this genre into three subgroups: the comic-satirical, funny but intellectual films; the completely demented ones like the cinepanettoni (which I told you about in this issue) and then those that fall in between the two extremes.
'In medio stat virtus' the Latins used to say, 'virtue lies in the middle', and it's in this spirit that I recommend today's film (which is perhaps closer to the demented side than the intellectual one :D) called 'Sole a catinelle'.
The film was released in Italian cinemas in 2013 and is a 90-minute comedy, directed by director Gennaro Nunziante and now available on Netflix.
In its first four days of release alone, the film grossed more than 18 million euros, making it the highest-grossing film in Italy in 2013. This is proof that Italians really like the comedy genre!
The protagonist is Checco (Checco Zalone), who represents the stereotype of the average Italian, with his vices and virtues, and with all the idiosyncrasies of a generation that grew up with traditional values that are perhaps a little dated, but which for this very reason make us laugh when they are brought back to the big screen.
Naturally, critics are divided between those who love it because it is light and ironic, a 'funny tale of Italy that wants to turn over a new leaf' (Il Sole 24 Ore) and those who hate it because 'it tells Italy as it is and not as it should be'. (Il Fatto quotidiano). But what is the plot of this film? Let me tell you (don't worry, no spoilers)!
Checco is a family man, emigrated to the north (like many southerners) with a job that does not stimulate him and from which he quits hoping to find something better. Unfortunately, just as he is quitting, his wife is fired, so Checco immediately throws himself into a job opportunity at a door-to-door sales agency.
To make matters worse, Checco promises his son a dream holiday if he gets all A's on his report card.
When the son, at the end of the year, keeps his part of the promise, the father (who does not have a euro in his pocket) - after having even tried in vain, in an act of comic desperation, to convince the teachers to lower his son's grades! - he is forced to take him on a holiday for real and chooses the cheapest destination possible, his native region, poor and desolate, with no possibility of recreation and with only old people who don't even remember what a child is... and this region is: Molise!
The film is not Oscar-worthy, but that's not its goal: it wants to make people laugh and (most of the time) it succeeds, with sometimes vulgar jokes but never too much because after all... it is a film for the whole family!
Checco is played by the comedian Checco Zalone (who likes to act under his own stage name; his real name is Luca Pasquale Medici) who was not born as an actor but as a comedian, cabaret artist, imitator, in short, what we in Italy call a mattatore.
A curiosity about his stage name: Checco Zalone recalls the Apulian expression "che cozzalone!" meaning "what a lout!".
This relates back to the person's choices in creating his character: although he has a degree in law, Checco decided to go the showbiz route, creating 'the Checco character' that shocks and makes people laugh at the same time because he is the stereotype of the average Italian, obviously exaggerating the clichés out of all proportion to get a laugh.
Another small curiosity: 'Sole a catinelle' is the first film that Checco does not shoot in Puglia, his real home region, but in Molise.
And that is exactly where I want to take you today, so I’ll leave you, as always, the trailer of the film: let me know if you will see it and write me in a comment if you liked it and... now let's go and see if Molise really is a poor and desolate region!
Where are we going today?
In the previous section, I told you that Molise in the film 'Sole a catinelle' is used as an example of a desolate, poor region with no relevant attractions. Of course, Molise does not have the GDP of Lombardy or the population density of Lazio, and certainly a lot of infrastructure and services leave something to be desired... but it is not true that it has nothing to offer.
To demonstrate this, I have specifically chosen to talk to you about three things plus a curiosity, which, however, since it's a curiosity... you will discover in the curiosity section. Don't jump ahead immediately though! :D
According to many Italians as well, there is nothing to see in Molise: just consider that when I was a teenager there was a meme going around on Facebook that said 'Molise does not exist' and was represented with a map of Italy and an empty space or with the sea instead of the region.
I also remember an attempt by the tourist board to promote the region with the hashtag #ilmoliseesiste.
In my opinion, the problem with places like this is that they remain anchored to their traditions and fail to keep up with the times, to keep up with the pace of progress, with the inevitable consequence of a slow but steady emptying out.
And yet, it's not always a bad thing to slow down and protect one's history and traditions; on the contrary, it's possible with a little creativity, to transform them, to reinvent them and even make them a tourist attraction.
And that is exactly what they have done in Isernia, with the Borgo del Merletto!
How many of you have ever heard of bobbin lace?
By chance, just a few days ago, I happened to see some videos on YouTube showing elderly ladies with a manual dexterity and speed equal to the Flash, moving strange wooden tools to create incredible lace. At the time I didn't pay much attention to it, they were just videos I was watching to pass the time but, researching for this issue, I discovered that the technique I had seen is called " arte del tombolo " or " merletto a tombolo " and takes its name from the cushion that is used for the work.
A design is fixed on the cushion with pins, and then the thread is worked by 'spinning' spindles (what looked to me like just odd pieces of wood) from side-to-side following precise patterns.
In Isernia, the capital of Molise, a "borgo" (hamlet) has been created right in the historic centre, dedicated to this ancient art. Inside, there are several shops entirely dedicated to “Pizzo del Merletto”; here, one can admire ancient bobbin lace trousseaus, learn about the history of this technique and the lace-makers who tell the story of its art.
Imagine that there are more than 250 lacemakers registered with the association and about 100 do this work full-time; there are also women who participate in events wearing traditional Isernese dresses.
While looking for information for this issue, I read several articles and also watched a few videos and realised that words are not enough to describe the craftsmanship of these women, the passion they have for this art and the beauty of the clothes and artefacts they produce.
Just think that before they inaugurated the "borgo", they created a product that is unique in Italy and that became the main attraction of the place: a 'Christmas tree' made up of no less than 250 pieces, all handmade using the lace-making technique!
But now let us move from the innovative "borgo" of Isernia to another "borgo", this time more ancient, in the municipality of Civitacampomarano. An incredibly long name for a municipality of about 400 inhabitants (but I discovered that in the local dialect, they call it Cvtà). We are in the province of Campobasso, in a place that at first glance may seem anonymous but instead hides some small curiosities.
First of all, like any self-respecting village, it cannot fail to have a castle: this castle, called Castello Angioino or Castello di Civitacampomarano, is located right in the centre of the municipality (which is not unusual if you think that life once developed around castles) and has a quadrangular plan with three cylindrical towers, two of which are still perfectly preserved and the third was rebuilt during restoration work between the 1990s and 2000s.
Thanks to the restoration, it is now possible to visit the castle in its entirety and see the stables, the cellars and dungeons, the kitchen and pantry, the nobles' rooms, the towers and the guard walkway, but like all castles, the most fascinating part is its history!
It was probably built in the 12th century, but it was in the 15th that it took on the appearance we see today, as it was completely transformed, enlarging the walls and adding two of the three towers that are there today, for better defence.
In the 1400s, two great families, the Angevins and the Aragons, fought numerous battles for the conquest of the Kingdom of Naples (which included almost all the territories of southern Italy).
During one of the clashes, which took place on the Plain of Sessano, the mercenary captain Paolo di Sangro, who was fighting with his men for the Angevins, committed an act of treason that has remained in history.
To the cry of 'Aragon, Aragon!' he switched sides, against the Angevins, winning the battle and thus obtaining the castle as a reward.
Perhaps the aura of betrayal remained within the walls of the fortress because Paolo's daughter, Altabella Di Sangro, also went down in history for her numerous infidelities to her husband Cola Monforte.
Over the centuries, the castle passed from family to family (obviously all noble and/or wealthy families) until 2 May 1979 when the last owner sold it to the Italian State, which declared it a national monument with a ministerial decree.
Today, the coats of arms of the families who lived in the castle are still preserved, but what I find most beautiful is the dragon above the coats of arms: firstly because I love dragons (they are beautiful!) and secondly because it has an allegorical meaning! The dragon has two upside-down lilies under its paws, these tell of the betrayal I mentioned earlier, against the Angevins in favour of an alliance with the Aragonese.
I do wonder, with a story like that, why hasn't anyone made a 'Game of Thrones'-style TV series about it yet? :D
Let's continue our journey through the municipality; of course, there is no shortage of churches (three are the most important: Santa Maria Maggiore, Santa Maria delle Grazie and San Giorgio Martire), but instead I would like to tell you about a house that deserves mention: the home of Vincenzo Cuoco.
At first sight, it is a simple medieval house, built of stone, which, although fascinating historically and architecturally, is not unusual in Italy; what makes it interesting is the person who lived there more than two centuries ago.
In the late 1700s and early 1800s, Italy (which was becoming the Italy we know today but was still a collection of various kingdoms and duchies) saw many battles, some more famous than others but all important historically because they shaped what Italy is today.
Doing research for this issue I almost fell down so many rabbit holes that for a moment I thought I had to change my name to Alice! So, I will not dwell too much on the story but I will mention a little to explain who Vincenzo Cuoco was.
In 1799, there was a real revolution in the kingdom of Naples, known as the Neapolitan Revolution, in which Mr. Cuoco took part. There have been many revolts and even a few revolutions in Italy, but this one is interesting because it succeeded in establishing a Republic, the Neapolitan Republic! Of course, it was short-lived, it lasted only a few months, and of course, as always happens, when the Republic fell and the Bourbons returned, Vincenzo Cuoco along with other philosophers and thinkers of the time, was condemned first to prison and then to exile.
But Mr. Cuoco did not give up, and in 1801, while in exile in Milan, he published his masterpiece: the Saggio storico sulla rivoluzione napoletana (Historical essay on the Neapolitan Revolution).
Exile therefore did not stop him and in 1806 he returned to the Kingdom of Naples (for by then there was Joseph Bonaparte and no longer the Bourbons), holding important public offices.
The curiosity that struck me the most concerns another work he wrote in 1809, the 'Progetto per l'ordinamento della pubblica istruzione nel Regno di Napoli', in which he explains how public education is indispensable for the formation of a popular national consciousness. His Illuminism soul is evident!
OK, I said I would not dwell too much on the historical aspect, but I wanted to tell you something about a little-known thinker (even among Italians) who was of Molisian origin, and he is not the only one! Along with him were Gabriele, Raffaele and Marcello Pepe, other philosophers, politicians and patriots, all from Molise, who participated in the birth of the Neapolitan Republic.
But now let's leave history aside because after all this research... I'm hungry! :D
For more: The art of lace-making and the Borgo del Merletto in Isernia with more info here; the Castle of Civitacampomarano; Vincenzo Cuoco's house and its history;
And now let's talk about food!
As you know I always start this section by complaining about how difficult it is to choose a typical dish of the city or region I am talking about, because there are always so many of them. Well, for this issue too it was difficult to choose a typical dish, but it was difficult for another reason.
I had to wander the Internet for a long time to find an authentic Molisan dish because, yes, there are many typical dishes of course, but not all of them originate from Molise! Many dishes have Abruzzese, Campanian or Apulian (the bordering regions) origins and so I struggled to find a recipe that is 100% Molisan.
In the end, however, I did it, I found a few, and among them all, I chose one that I definitely want to try (as soon as the temperatures are low enough to allow me to turn on the oven at home without melting from the heat :D) and so let's see what 'grandinje pizza' is!
You all surely know the classic pizza, but in Molise there is an interesting variant. Translating the name from Molise, we could call it 'pizza e minestra' (pizza and soup), because the 'pizza' in question is not eaten alone but accompanied with vegetables.
Let's start with pizza, which is prepared with water, salt, oil, fennel and chilli pepper, but the key ingredient is flour! In fact, it is not the classic wheat flour that is used but corn flour!
The procedure for preparing the dough is similar to that of pizza as we know it, but the cooking can vary: it can be cooked in the oven or it can be prepared in a frying pan with a thick bottom, covering it with a lid that you remove 15 minutes before the end of cooking.
The second method of cooking, however, requires the use of the oven (specifically, the 'grill' function) to obtain a crust on the surface, and while the pizza is cooking, you can prepare the vegetables, namely Swiss chard, chicory, broccoli or Savoy cabbage (by the way, all vegetables that I love!) by boiling them in plenty of water and then frying them with oil and garlic.
An interesting feature is that the vegetables are not allowed to dry out, but rather, towards the end of the cooking time, a few ladles of water are added (the cooking water of the vegetables is used, which goes to prove the saying 'nothing is wasted!') with the result that the final consistency is a bit brothy.
At this point, opinions are divided: some serve the pizza separate from the soup (which is therefore used as a substitute for bread) and others break it up and combine it with the vegetables until everything is mixed together.
Of course, when I’ll try to make this dish, I will experiment with both techniques so that I can tell you which is, in my opinion, the best version.
Have you ever tried this dish? If yes, do you like it? If not, would you like to try it? Do you know any other special variations of pizza?
Let me know in a comment!
For more: Pizza and soup, the recipe.
Fun facts in Italian
We are wrapping up, but before leaving you, as always, I thank you for making it to the end of this issue and I look forward to seeing you in a fortnight with more stories, more places and more dishes!
If you enjoyed this issue let us know by clicking on the little heart and share the newsletter with your friends!
This issue, however, is not yet over! I promised you a curiosity, so...
Did you know that ... in Civitacampomarano since 2016, every year there is a festival called Cvtà Street Fest?
It's, as the name implies, a festival dedicated to 'street art', i.e. the evolution of graffiti and muralism that merge into a unique art that not only has aesthetic value but also expresses a political or social message.
What is striking about this project is its inception: the first artist to paint the walls of the historic centre is Alice Pasquini (aka AliCè).
Alice was contacted by the President of the Pro Loco 'Vincenzo Cuoco' with an invitation to share her art in an almost completely uninhabited municipality and she accepted, not only for the artistic value of the project but also for sentimental reasons! Civitacampomarano is in fact her grandfather's home town and so Alice wanted to paint "on old doors to remember what is now gone. Many beautiful houses are now empty, depopulation has been enormous and Civitacampomarano today has little more than four hundred inhabitants'. (translated quote from here)
What happened next is worthy of a Hollywood movie! The villagers took action by giving access to the walls and doors of their houses, and today, every year for four days, artists come from all over the world to tell new stories, to breathe new life into old, time-worn walls, to look with new eyes at a land that does not really exist.
For more: More about Molisan art and the Cvtà Street Fest.
Sfogliando l'Italia is a free newsletter but if you want, you can buy us a coffee to support our work and enable us to offer you more and more interesting content! Now that the temperatures have dropped a bit, the coffee tastes even better! :D
Also, if you are studying Italian, you can book a lesson on Italki with me or with my partner Alex.