Take heart, Cristina Comencini – they laughed and booed your “Quando La Notte” at last year’s Venice Film Festival, but maybe one day you’ll be vindicated – I doubt it, but look what happened to L’Avventura at Cannes in 1960.
From TotalFilm.com:
The Film: Michelangelo Antonioni’s masterpiece follows the story of a woman who disappears during a Mediterranean boating trip, and the growing attraction between her lover and her best friend during the subsequent search. A perfectly paced study of isolation, and a downbeat diversion from the “adventure” promised by the title.
The Reaction: The critics may have gone on to heap L’Avventura with praise, but during its first Cannes screening it was met by howls of derision from the festival audience, so much so that Antonioni fled the theatre in horror. Eventually, the jurors came to their senses, awarding it the Jury Prize after a second, well-received screening. Talk about a turnaround.
Did It Deserve The Hate? The sudden turnaround and subsequent praise would suggest not. Everyone seemed to feel a bit silly…
I Love Italian Everything 