Twice Born

{{about||the Soviet film|Twice Born (1983 film)|the Indian concept|Dvija}}

{{Infobox film

| native_name = {{Infobox name module|it|Venuto al mondo|nolink=yes}}

| image = Venuto al mondo.jpg

| alt =

| caption =

| director = Sergio Castellitto

| producer = {{ubl|Sergio Castellitto|Roberto Sessa}}

| writer =

| screenplay = {{ubl|Sergio Castellitto|Margaret Mazzantini}}

| story = Margaret Mazzantini

| based_on =

| narrator =

| starring = {{ubl|Penélope Cruz|Emile Hirsch|Adnan Hasković|Saadet Aksoy|Pietro Castellitto|Luca De Filippo|Jane Birkin}}

| music =

| cinematography =

| editing =

| studio =

| distributor = Entertainment One

| released = {{Film date|df=y|2012|9|13|Toronto|2012|11|8|Italy|2013|01|11|Spain}}

| runtime = 127 minutes

| country = {{ubl|Italy|Spain}}

| language = {{ubl|English|Italian|Bosnian}}

| budget = €13,000,000

| gross =

}}

Twice Born ({{langx|it|Venuto al mondo|links=no}}) is a 2012 drama film directed by Sergio Castellitto, which stars Penélope Cruz and Emile Hirsch. It is based on the novel Venuto al mondo by Margaret Mazzantini which won the Premio Campiello literary prize in 2009. Castellitto also co-wrote the screenplay.{{Cite book|last=Mazzantini, Margaret.|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/721931949|title=Twice born|date=2011|publisher=Oneworld|isbn=978-1-85168-844-9|location=Oxford [UK]|oclc=721931949}}{{Cite web|title=Biografia|url=http://www.margaretmazzantini.com/2011/11/biografia/|access-date=2020-07-26|website=Margaret Mazzantini|language=it-IT}}{{cite web |url= http://www.slashfilm.com/twice-born-trailer-penelope-cruz-and-emile-hirsch-star-in-a-tale-of-motherhood-and-war/ |title='Twice Born' Trailer: Penelope Cruz and Emile Hirsch Star In A Tale Of Motherhood And War|first= Germain|last= Lussier|work=slashfilm.com |date=5 September 2012|accessdate=17 September 2012}}

Plot

Oft-married Gemma visits Sarajevo with her only child, Pietro. The two of them had escaped the city sixteen years ago, just days after his birth during the Bosnian War. Diego, her second husband and Pietro's father, remained behind and later died. As they travel with her wartime friend Gojko, she tries to repair her relationship with Pietro, asking her third husband (by phone) if she should tell Pietro that she did not give birth to him. Gemma is later stunned by the revelation that Pietro's real mother, Aska, is still alive and married to Gojko. Aska reveals that, contrary to Gemma's long held belief, Diego was not Pietro's father, as she had been a sex slave to a garrison of the Serb Volunteer Guard. Gemma must face loss, the cost of war and the redemptive power of love.

Cast

{{Cast listing|

Penélope Cruz as Gemma
Emile Hirsch as Diego
Adnan Hasković as Gojko
Saadet Aksoy as Aska
Pietro Castellitto as Pietro
Luca De Filippo as Armando
Sergio Castellitto as Giuliano
Vinicio Marchioni as Fabio
Mira Furlan as Velida
Jane Birkin as Psychologist
Branko Đurić as Doctor
Isabelle Adriani as Giornalista
Moamer Kasumović as Zoran
Milan Pavlović

}}

Production

The film was shot over 15 weeks in digital using the Arri Alexa system.{{cite web |url= http://collider.com/sergio-castellitto-twice-born-interview/195629/|title=Sergio Castellitto TWICE BORN Interview|first= Steve|last= Weintraub|work=collider.com|date=17 September 2012|accessdate=17 September 2012}}

Release

The film had its world premiere at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival.{{cite web |url= http://www.indiewire.com/article/tiff-list-2012-an-updated-list-of-all-films-at-the-toronto-international-film-festival |title=TIFF List 2012: A Complete List of All Films at the Toronto International Film Festival|first= Peter|last= Knegt|work=indiewire.com |date=5 September 2012|accessdate=17 September 2012}} It was theatrically released in Spain on 11 January 2013.{{Cite web|url=https://www.20minutos.es/cinemania/criticas/volver-a-nacer-18999/|website=Cinemanía|via=20minutos.es|date=11 January 2013|title=Volver a nacer|first=Carlos|last=Marañón}}

Reception

The film received negative critic reviews. It holds a 17% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 23 reviews.{{cite web|title=Twice Born|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/twice_born/|website=Rotten Tomatoes}}

About the film, The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "Dripping with floridly phony dialogue that no actor should be forced to speak, this paternity mystery uses the Bosnian conflict as the manipulative backdrop to a preposterously overwrought and overlong melodrama."{{cite web|last1=Rooney|first1=David|title=Twice Born: Review|url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/twice-born-movie-review-penelope-cruz-emile-hirsch-371340|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=18 September 2012|accessdate=23 September 2012}} Variety added that the film had "little to offer beyond some pitiful twists."{{cite web|last1=van Hoeij|first1=Boyd|title=Review: 'Twice Born'|url=https://variety.com/2012/film/markets-festivals/twice-born-1117948406/|work=Variety|date=23 September 2012|accessdate=23 September 2012}} Screen International went on to write, "director Sergio Castellitto’s adaptation of Margaret Mazzantini’s novel leaves no cliché unturned, yearning for big emotions that are consistently flattened by the lumbering storytelling."{{cite web|last1=Grierson|first1=Tim|title=Twice Born|url=http://www.screendaily.com/reviews/the-latest/twice-born/5046373.article|work=Screen International|date=9 September 2012|accessdate=23 September 2012}}