By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday February 17, 2012 @ 11:57am PST
Adopt Films has announced its acquisition of all U.S. rights to Paolo and Vittorio Taviani’s “Caesar Must Die,” its second acquisition of a title competing for the Golden Bear at this year’s ongoing Berlin International Film Festival following Ursula Meier’s “Sister.”
“Caesar Must Die” is the latest and one of the most surprising entries to be co-directed by the Taviani Brothers. This revivifying effort is the latest chapter in a storied career that includes “Padre Padrone,” “The Night of the Shooting Stars,” “Good Morning, Babylon,” “Elective Infinities,” and “Kaos.”
A fully scripted semi-documentary work, “Caesar Must Die” takes the audience behind the walls of Rome’s high-security Rebibbia prison for the rehearsal, staging, and performing of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, a production cast with actual prison inmates. Alternatively fierce and introspective, acted and experienced with abject reality, “Caesar Must Die” explores the transformative power of art even under the most dire and seemingly hopeless of circumstances.Tim Grady said of the film, “As a long-time fan of the Taviani brothers we couldn’t be happier with this acquisition. ‘Caesar Must Die’ is an incredibly poignant film. It portrays how art can liberate the soul and profoundly change one’s view of the world. But it also shows how such a change can reveal an abyss of loss and regret. The film should be an inspiration for many students previously unfamiliar with the accessible work of these masters as well as for long-time admirers of riveting Italian cinema.”
“Caesar Must Die” joins an Adopt Films’ slate that includes Anne Émond’s “Nuit #1,” a 2011 Toronto International Film Festival hit and multiple Genie Award nominee, Ursula Meier’s 2012 Berlin Competition selection “Sister,” Marie Losier’s 2011 Berlin Festival award-winner “The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye” and Debbie Goodstein’s “Mighty Fine.”