When Italian director Paolo Genovese was a child, he dreamed of becoming a psychoanalyst — a dream that never materialized, but one he ultimately fulfilled through cinema. His films allow him to peer into the human soul, explore behavioral psychology and examine relationships between men and women.
In his best-known film, 2016's "Perfect Strangers", Genovese tackled our obsessive addiction to smartphones and revealed how little we truly know about the people closest to us. This summer, the Italian filmmaker will turn 60, and at this stage in his life he has turned his attention to the world of dating.
His new film, "Madly" (released in Israel this week), unfolds — like "Perfect Strangers"— largely in a single location. The romantic comedy centers on Piero and Lara (played by Edoardo Leo and Pilar Fogliati).
After meeting briefly at a bar, the two strangers agree to a first date at Lara’s apartment in Rome, complete with dinner and good wine. But they are not alone. Sharing the space are several other “entities” — the voices racing through Piero and Lara’s minds: their egos, anxieties, ambitions and emotions, embodying feelings such as love, skepticism and desire. These characters react in real time to the events of the evening, raising the inevitable question: can Piero and Lara overcome the noise in their heads and make it through the date unscathed?
If the premise sounds familiar, it inevitably recalls Pixar’s 2015 animated hit "Inside Out", set inside the mind of an 11-year-old girl guided by five emotions — Joy, Sadness, Anger, Disgust and Fear. Some critics have described "Madly" as a more adult version of "Inside Out", or as a “more Italian and more human interpretation of the inner dialogue mechanism.”
But Genovese insists the idea predates Pixar’s film. “Twenty-five years ago I worked in advertising and directed commercials,” he recalled in an interview at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival. “In one ad I showed a man struggling with the different personalities in his head, each wanting something else. He’s standing in a café and one voice says, ‘I want a croissant,’ another replies, ‘No. You’re fat,’ and a third concludes, ‘Fine, just coffee.’ The message was that every person, at any given moment, has multiple voices operating simultaneously.”
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Paolo Genovese, center, and the 'Madly' cast
(Photo: Fabriccio Lucci, courtesy of Nachshon Films)
The campaign was a major success and, he says, “it sparked the idea of making a film about the different personalities living inside us. Three or four years later I made a film that nobody saw,” he adds with a laugh. “In that one there were only two actors, same main character, but when he's shy, I have an actor who is sure and very strong.”
Six years ago, the concept for "Madly" resurfaced. “It wants to explore and tell the story of the struggles in our heads when we face important decisions in life — especially decisions that can make our lives wonderful or unbearable.”
You're married and a father. What did you bring from your experiences in the dating world to the film?
“Each of us has fears, sensitivities and anxieties on a first date. It’s universal — you’re very excited in that situation. Everyone has had those thoughts during a romantic meeting: ‘What should I say? How should I react if she says something? What should I do? When can I kiss her?’ Anyone who has tried to be in a relationship wants to present the best version of themselves.
“But what interests me is the conflict, not just the emotions. I can’t say I experienced exactly what happens in Madly, but we all bring something from our private lives into our work.”
"The change of roles of men and women has made men much more insecure. We meet through social media and are afraid of real relationships."
Genovese co-wrote the screenplay with Isabella Aguilar, Lucia Calamaro and Flaminia Gressi. “It was very interesting to work with them because each had a different idea about every situation. We argued and discussed a lot, and this type of film allowed us to put those debates directly into the script. We didn’t have to decide what was the ‘right’ thing to say — we simply included the thoughts running through our minds. In that sense, the film’s dialogues are a kind of behind-the-scenes glimpse into our own writing sessions.”
Male-female relationships are a topic that really preoccupies you in your films
“That relationship has changed over the years. Women demand more today — and rightly so. Their role has evolved significantly. They are taking positions of power and standing up for their rights. So in Madly, women are much more active agents.
“At the same time, the mechanism of the different entities in both men’s and women’s minds gave me and my co-writers the opportunity to represent both fully. The woman in our film questions everything. She doesn’t say, ‘The man should bring the wine.’ She thinks, ‘Maybe he should — but it depends on the circumstances.’ We shouldn’t give absolute value to things. We need to be more flexible and, above all, understand context.”
What do you think about the dating world today, which has changed a lot since we live in the age of apps?
“That’s why in "Madly" I tell the story about a normal date. Not a Tinder date, not an Instagram date. They meet each other in a bar. Maybe that’s old-fashioned, but it's so more warmer, more interesting I think. The change of roles of men and women has made men much more insecure. We meet through social media and are afraid of real relationships.”
What do you mean by that?
“Social media creates a kind of a wall between us. We feel more comfortable. So we meet, we know each other for a long time. By web, by Instagram, by Facebook. And only at the end when we are in our comfort zone, we try to meet the other person. I don't know, it's very, very different from when I was 20.
“I don’t really like this change, because it makes us slightly dishonest. On social media we reveal only part of ourselves — only the image we want to show. When you receive a message, it comes after the other person has carefully thought about what to say. In real life you’re more authentic, your reactions are instinctive — you have to respond immediately.
“A romantic date has become a bit like an escape room: you have all the clues, but if you make one mistake, you’re out. A comedy like "Madly" has the power to look at society with sarcasm, and that becomes stronger the more social changes affect us.”
As for what’s next, Genovese has already completed a new film, "The Noise of New Things", about three couples in Milan whose lives are upended by a single event.
First published: 08:29, 02.19.26