It was one of the XX century's most important dramaturges who received the "Premio Fiesole Maestri del cinema" 2001 edition: Harold Pinter. Thoroughly English, imperturbable and laconic, Pinter with his elegant and impressive seventy one years of age, after receiving the title of "Master of Cinema" - given to him by the "Gruppo toscano dei Critici Cinematografici Italiani" - was then honoured with the honoris causa degree of the Florentine University and has inaugurated a week of studies dedicated to his work in cinema. As a scriptwriter and actor. After a convention in the main hall of the Fiesole workshop, many of the films he acted in will be shown at the Alfieri Atelier.
For the occasion a collection of essays, published by Aida and with the editing of Cristina Jandelli, Beatrice Manetti and Giovanni Maria Rossi will also be released with the title "Dal teatro della minaccia al cinema delle ceneri" ('From the theatre of menace to the cinema of ashes').
Of him, in cinema, we especially point out his works with Joseph Losey: " Joseph and I - he tells - had a tested method: we talked, we got drunk and then I would go home and write ". From this alliance masterpieces were created such as: "The servant" (1963), "Accident" (1967); "The Go-between" (1971) but of Pinter we also quote "The Last Tycoon" by Elia Kazan and "The French lieutenant's woman " by Karel Reitz.
Many scripts were taken from literary works or from previous stage works by him "The Caretaker" filmed by Clive Donner in '63 for example or "The Birthday" from '68 by William Friedkin. Pinter never wrote an original script for the cinema. His last appearance on the big screen was in the recent "The tailor in Panama" by John Boorman.
Happy to be in Florence, Harold Pinter held a thanksgiving speech for the city, remembering that many of his works had beautiful Italian versions "Except for Visconti -he recalled smiling- who betrayed me with a completely personal re-edition of "Old times" (1971)". "Italian directors I prefer Fellini and ...Visconti. Naturally".
Pinter finally also made a last wish: seeing an adaptation for the cinema of the piéce taken from the Proustian "Recherche", written in the 70's.
Fiesole Municipality
Harold Pinter - Official website
