(Lina Wertmüller, Cannes Classics, © Lindsay Bellinger 2019) 

By LINDSAY R. BELLINGER

Italian filmmaker Lina Wertmüller made movie history in 1977 when she became the first woman nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director for her 1975 film Pasqualino Settebellezze (Seven Beauties). It starts off making you laugh and then progresses through an array of emotions before finally hitting you so hard that if the tears aren't flowing I really think that you might need to see a doctor to check to make sure your tear ducts aren't clogged. My Cannes 2019 favorite film so far is without a doubt Seven Beauties. It is a film that I want to share with my friends and loved ones because I fear that far too many people have not enjoyed this magnificent piece of art. Wertmüller took plenty of time to sign autographs and take pictures after her screening, with some audience members even having original posters from her film. Do yourself a favor and see this film in its glorious restored version. 

(Lina Wertmüller, Cannes Classics, © Lindsay Bellinger 2019)