Via Castellana Bandiera

Two women, Rosa (Emma Dante) and Clara (Alba Rohrwacher), bicker as they drive through the Palermo backstreets; we soon realise they are lovers on the verge of a break-up. A proletarian family return from a fractious day at the beach, driven by Samira, the resented mother-in-law of a sweaty, crass, bolshy family patriarch. Finally, the two cars grind to a halt facing each other, with neither driver prepared to reverse. It's a stand-off that begins in the realm of the possible but soon drifts into more dreamlike, allegorical territory. (Umeå European Film Festival)