Roberto Andò (right) directs “Viva la Libertà,” starring Toni Servillo (left).
Silvio Berlusconi was Italian prime minister yet again when theater and film director Roberto Andò began writing his novel “Il Truono Vuoto (The Empty Throne),” which he would later adapt as the award-winning film “Viva la Libertà.” A lightning rod for scandals that have included accusations of abuse of power and bribery and the high-profile Ruby case, in which Berlusconi was accused of having sex with an underage prostitute and then covering it up, the prime minister inspired political satire in an artist fed up with Italy’s dysfunctional politics.
“In Italy we have dreamed of changing things for over 50 years now, but it never happens,” Andò says. “The people seemed paralyzed by the Berlusconi situation. It was a terrible situation. I was thinking it was a necessity to write about politics. I decided to write about a political man who is so paralyzed that he cannot speak anymore, that he is not able to do what he has to do.”
The tale revolves around identical twins, played by Toni Servillo. Enrico Oliveri is the leader of the opposition party, but he just doesn’t have the stomach for politicking anymore. His solution is to drop out of sight and hide out in France with former girlfriend Danielle (Valeri Bruni Tedeschi) and her family. To avoid scandal, his right-hand man, Andrea (Valerio Mastandrea), recruits Oliveri’s bipolar twin, Giovanni Ernani, to take his place, re-energizing the party when Ernani’s frank, manic speeches prove popular.
“It’s a reflection of today’s politics, where we feel like the politicians are always wearing a mask,” director Andò says. “By making the brothers identical, it demonstrates that it is impossible to tell the difference between what is fake and what is true.”
What has surprised Andò is the worldwide reach of “Viva la Libertà.” A comedy very specific to Italian politics has played all over Europe and in Japan, Taiwan, Argentina, Brazil and Israel. It is not only opening in the United States, but Andò also has been approached about an American remake.
“We need now something that is a new vision,” he says. “We haven’t found it. This story seems to speak to that. It resonates.”
Andò was surprised to discover that there is an American film in which an identical stand-in takes the place of the U.S. president. 1993’s political satire/romance “Dave” stars Kevin Kline as the double who exposes official corruption and falls in love with the first lady.
“The question of twins is a very old story,” says Andò. “It appears in Aristophanes. It’s in the Greek period, the Latin period, the Baroque. Man is dual-natured, so it’s a way to kind of tell our history.”