Perfect Strangers (2016 film)

Perfect Strangers
Theatrical release poster
ItalianPerfetti sconosciuti
Directed byPaolo Genovese
Screenplay by
Story byPaolo Genovese
Produced byMarco Belardi
Starring
CinematographyFabrizio Lucci
Edited byConsuelo Catucci
Music byMaurizio Filardo
Production
companies
  • Medusa Film
  • Lotus Production
Distributed byMedusa Distribuzione
Release date
  • 11 February 2016 (2016-02-11) (Italy)
Running time
97 minutes
CountryItaly
LanguageItalian
Box office$32.2 million[1]

Perfect Strangers (Italian: Perfetti sconosciuti[2] [perˈfɛtti skonoʃˈʃuːti]) is a 2016 Italian comedy-drama film directed and co-written by Paolo Genovese.[3][4] It was released in Italy on 11 February 2016.[4]

The film was a critical and commercial success, winning the David di Donatello in the Best Film Category and grossing more than €16 million in Italy. It has been remade more than 20 times.

Plot

[edit]

On the evening of a total eclipse of the moon, seven close friends gather for a dinner party. Early in the meal, one of the friends, a relationship therapist named Eva, says that she is convinced that many couples would separate if they saw the messages on each other's phones. As the friends debate this contention, they agree—some of them reluctantly—to play a game. They will each place their phone on the table and they will share their messages and calls with the rest of the group.

At first, the game seems harmless; no one has anything to hide. Gradually, the calls and messages become more compromising. They reveal that one married woman is having an affair and that a man who has been pretending to have an absent girlfriend is not who he seems. As the calls continue, the network of lies and secrets becomes increasingly tangled. Almost no one at the table is spared. By the end of the night, the group's friendships, marriages, and romances have been shattered.[5]

As the guests leave the apartment, they behave as if nothing has happened. Each of their relationships are exactly as they were at the start of the evening. The game never happened, and everybody goes back to their own lives.

Cast

[edit]

Reception

[edit]

Box office

[edit]

The film was number-one on its opening week in Italy, with US$3.7 million.[3] It grossed $31.6 million at the box office.[1]

Critical response

[edit]

On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an approval rating of 77% based on reviews from 13 critics, and an average rating of 6.7/10.[6]

Accolades

[edit]
Year Award/Festival Category Recipients Result
2016 David di Donatello Best Film Paolo Genovese Won
Best Director Paolo Genovese Nominated
Best Script Paolo Genovese, Filippo Bologna, Paolo Costella, Paola Mammini, Rolando Ravello Won
Best Actress Anna Foglietta Nominated
Best Actor Marco Giallini Nominated
Best Actor Valerio Mastandrea Nominated
Best Original Song Perfetti sconosciuti by Bungaro, Cesare Chiodo and Fiorella Mannoia Nominated
Best Editing Consuelo Catucci Nominated
Best Sound Umberto Montesanti Nominated
2016 Bari International Film Festival Tonino Guerra Award for Best Scriptment Paolo Genovese Won
2016 Tribeca Film Festival Best Screenplay Paolo Genovese, Filippo Bologna, Paolo Costella, Paola Mammini, Rolando Ravello Won
2017 Vilnius International Film Festival Audience's Favourite Film[7] Paolo Genovese Won

Remakes

[edit]
Country Original title English title Release date Note
Greece Τέλειοι Ξένοι Perfect Strangers 15 December 2016 [8]
Spain Perfectos desconocidos Perfect Strangers 1 December 2017 Directed by Álex de la Iglesia.[9]
Turkey Cebimdeki Yabancı Stranger in My Pocket  [tr] 2 February 2018 [10]
France Le Jeu Nothing to Hide 17 October 2018 Directed by Fred Cavayé.[11]
South Korea 완벽한 타인 Intimate Strangers 31 October 2018 [12]
Hungary BÚÉK Happy New Year  [hu] 6 December 2018 Directed by Krisztina Goda.[13]
Mexico Perfectos desconocidos Perfect Strangers 25 December 2018 [14]
China 来电狂响 Kill Mobile  [zh] 29 December 2018 [15]
Russia Громкая связь Loud Connection 14 February 2019 [16] A sequel, Obratnaya svyaz, was released in 2020.[17]
Armenia Անհայտ բաժանորդ Unknown Subscriber  [hy] 5 September 2019 [18]
Poland (Nie)znajomi 16 September 2019 [19]
Germany Das perfekte Geheimnis 31 October 2019 [20]
Vietnam Tiệc trăng máu Blood Moon Party  [vi] 23 October 2020 [21]
Japan おとなの事情 スマホをのぞいたら 8 January 2021 [22]
Slovakia, Czech Republic Známi neznámi 5 August 2021 [23]
Romania Complet necunoscuți Perfect Strangers  [ro][24] 24 September 2021 [25]
Netherlands Alles op tafel Perfect Strangers  [nl] 4 November 2021 [26]
Israel זרים מושלמים Perfect Strangers  [he] 11 November 2021 Directed by Lior Ashkenazi.[27]
Egypt, Lebanon, United Arab Emirates أصحاب ...ولا أعزّ Perfect Strangers 20 January 2022 Released by Netflix.[28]
Norway Full dekning  [no] 25 February 2022 [29]
Indonesia Perfect Strangers  [id] 20 October 2022 Released by Amazon Prime Video.[30]
Azerbaijan Geri dönənlər 28 December 2022 [31]
Iceland Villibráð Wild Game 6 January 2023[32] [33]
Denmark, Iceland Hygge! 26 October 2023 [34]
India Khel Khel Mein 15 August 2024 [35]

As of December 2017, remakes were underway in Qatar and Sweden.[36]

In February 2017, The Weinstein Company acquired the rights to an English-language remake.[37] In December 2019, Issa Rae was announced to write, star in, and produce the US remake with Spyglass Media Group, a subsidiary of Lantern Entertainment, which acquired the assets of The Weinstein Company after its bankruptcy.[38] In December 2023, producer Tarak Ben Ammar revealed that his Eagle Pictures was working on the remake with Italian filmmaker Carlo Carlei set to direct the film. Rae was no longer attached to star.[39]

Having been remade 24 times, the film was recognized as the most remade film in Guinness World Records.[40]

The Indian films Loudspeaker (2018) and 12th Man (2022) have been accused to have plagiarised Perfect Strangers.[41][42] 1001 Nunakal (2022) was inspired by Perfect Strangers.[43]

Stage adaptations

[edit]

A number of Spanish-language stage adaptations of Perfect Strangers have been produced. An Argentine adaptation directed by Guillermo Francella premiered in March 2018.[44] A Spanish version adapted by David Serrano and Daniel Guzmán and directed by Guzmán premiered on 26 September 2018.[45] A Uruguayan production premiered in April 2019.[46] A Peruvian adaptation premiered on 9 October 2019.[47] A Mexican production premiered in November 2019.[48] A Colombian production premiered in March 2022.[49]

An Israeli adaptation opened at the Habima Theatre on 22 November 2018.[50] Two Slovene adaptations opened in 2019 and 2023, respectively.[51][52]

An Italian adaptation, directed by Genovese himself, in his theatrical debut, premiered on 10 February 2023.[53][54]

An English-language adaptation written and directed by Robert O'Hara, titled Shit. Meet. Fan., premiered off-Broadway at MCC Theater on 10 October 2024.[55]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "Perfetti sconosciuti (2016)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  2. ^ "Perfect Strangers". Tribeca Film Festival. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
  3. ^ a b Anderson, Ariston (16 February 2016). "Italy Box Office: Local Comedy Trumps 'Zoolander 2' Debut". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Perfetti Sconosciuti: il film di Paolo Genovese al cinema dall'11 Febbraio". cinematographe.it (in Italian). 24 December 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  5. ^ "Perfect Strangers". Archived from the original on 26 February 2021.
  6. ^ Perfect Strangers (2016), retrieved 7 July 2021
  7. ^ "Audience Choice Awards 2017". KinoPavasaris.lt/en. 7 April 2017. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
  8. ^ "Perfect Strangers". View Master Films. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  9. ^ "'Perfectos desconocidos' lidera la taquilla española seis semanas después de su estreno". Bolsamanía (in Spanish). 15 January 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  10. ^ "Cebimdeki Yabancı". Box Office Türkiye (in Turkish). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  11. ^ "Le Jeu". AlloCiné (in French). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  12. ^ "Intimate Strangers". Lotte Entertainment. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  13. ^ "Happy New Year (BÚÉK)". National Film Institute Hungary. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  14. ^ Calvillo, Martha (12 December 2018). "Presentan Perfectos Desconocidos a la mexicana en Guadalajara". Milenio (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  15. ^ 【来电狂响】12月29日上映，游戏之夜，你敢玩吗？. Sohu (in Chinese). 26 December 2018. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  16. ^ Громкая связь (фильм, 2019). Film.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  17. ^ Tokmasheva, Masha (15 December 2020). «Обратная связь»: Почему мужчинам из «Квартета И» пора перестать говорить только о себе. Kino-Teatr.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  18. ^ ""Unknown Subscriber" ("Perfect Strangers"): VivaCell-MTS is the partner of the most anticipated movie of the year" (Press release). Viva-MTS. 9 September 2019. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  19. ^ "(Nie)znajomi (2019)". Filmweb.pl (in Polish). 30 September 2019. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  20. ^ Schering, Sidney (25 October 2019). "Das perfekte Geheimnis". Wessels Filmkritik (in German). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  21. ^ Ky, Tam (16 November 2020). "'Blood Moon Party' breaks Vietnam box office record". VnExpress International. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  22. ^ 『おとなの事情 スマホをのぞいたら』2021年1月8日(金)公開決定のお知らせ (Press release) (in Japanese). Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan). 3 July 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  23. ^ "VIDEO: Do slovenských kín prichádza komédia Známi neznámi". Teraz.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  24. ^ "Perfect Strangers". Cineuropa. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  25. ^ "Complet necunoscuți (2021)". Cinemagia (in Romanian). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  26. ^ "Perfect Strangers". Cineuropa. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  27. ^ זרים מושלמים. Secret.co.il (in Hebrew). Retrieved 27 January 2022.
  28. ^ Vivarelli, Nick (21 December 2021). "Netflix Swoops on 'Perfect Strangers' Adaptation as Its First Arab Original Film". Variety. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  29. ^ "Her er vårens norske kinofilmer" (in Norwegian). Norsk filminstitut. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  30. ^ Angelina, Tarida (1 August 2022). "Film Before Now & Then, Perfect Strangers, dan Ashiap Man Akan Rilis di Amazon Prime Video". VOI (in Indonesian). Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  31. ^ "Bu tarixdə məşhur azərbaycanlıların bütün sirləri ifşa olunacaq - Video/Foto". Publika.az. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  32. ^ ""Perfect Strangers" has been remade more than 20 times since 2016". The Economist. 3 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  33. ^ "Wild Game". Icelandic Film Centre. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  34. ^ Bentien, Daniel (11 September 2023). "Ægte dansk hygge bliver sat alvorligt under pres i ny komedie". Kino.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 11 September 2023.
  35. ^ Mishra, Vinay MR (16 September 2023). "Akshay Kumar and Fardeen Khan's Khel Khel Mein is a remake of Perfect Strangers; Aditya Seal joins the cast". The Times of India. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  36. ^ "Il remake di "Perfetti sconosciuti" bloccato negli Usa per colpa di Weinstein". Giornalettismo (in Italian). 12 June 2017. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  37. ^ McNary, Dave (17 February 2017). "Weinstein Company to Remake Italian Comedy 'Perfect Strangers'". Variety. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  38. ^ McNary, Dave (4 December 2019). "Issa Rae to Star in and Produce 'Perfect Strangers' Remake". Variety. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
  39. ^ Wiseman, Andreas (4 December 2023). "Eagle Pictures Boss Tarak Ben Ammar Teases "Big" Incoming Projects & Gives Update On English-Language 'Perfect Strangers' With Spyglass — Red Sea Studio". Deadline. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  40. ^ "Most remade film". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
  41. ^ "Loudspeaker movie review: Smarting with the phone". Bangalore Mirror. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  42. ^ Shrijith, Sajin (19 August 2023). "'1001 Nunakal' film review: Stimulating, ingeniously constructed family drama". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  43. ^ Shrijith, Sajin (25 May 2022). "'Full transparency in relationships doesn't exist'". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  44. ^ "Llega «Perfectos desconocidos» bajo la dirección de Guillermo Francella". El Ciudadano (in Spanish). 4 September 2019. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  45. ^ Alba, José Antonio (31 August 2018). "Daniel Guzmán dirige la versión teatral de 'Perfectos desconocidos'". Teatro Madrid (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  46. ^ Reyes, Carlos (25 April 2019). ""Perfectos desconocidos" en Teatro Movie: tu celular te puede traicionar". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  47. ^ Rodriguez Bazalar, Juan Diego (8 October 2019). "Las relaciones en entredicho". El Comercio (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  48. ^ Castillo, Arantxa (15 November 2019). "El Nuevo Teatro Libanés recibe a sus PERFECTOS DESCONOCIDOS". Cartelera de Tetaro (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  49. ^ Martínez, Olga Lucía (20 March 2022). "Una noche para ser 'Perfectos desconocidos'". El Tiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  50. ^ זרים מושלמים (in Hebrew). Habima Theatre. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  51. ^ "Popolni tujci" (in Slovenian). Slovensko narodno gledališče Maribor. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  52. ^ "Popolni tujci" (in Slovenian). Šenjakobsko gledališče Ljubljana. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  53. ^ Bellucci, Michele (15 February 2023). "Paolo Genovese: «In Umbria per gli ultimi ritocchi». Stasera al Morlacchi debutta Perfetti sconosciuti teatrale". Il Messaggero (in Italian). Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  54. ^ "Perfetti sconosciuti" (in Italian). Nuovo Teatro. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
  55. ^ Tran, Diep (10 October 2024). "Shit. Meet. Fan Begins First Performance October 10". Playbill. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
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