Italy grew to be a powerhouse in the 1960s and 1970s when Italian cinema became a rite of passage, but the powerhouse has lost a step since then. Luckily, it is represented by a fantastic film in Il Divo. Unfortunately, it had the luck of drawing against Lord of the Rings: Return of the King – a heavily favored film in this competition. The New Zealand representative easily defeated historical drama Bathory, and the Italian politician beat the Cannes selection Paraguayan Hammock in Round One. We may be saying “Ciao” to Italy unless they can pull off a stunning upset.

The relatively unknown Cannes selection Paraguayan Hammock represents its home country against the resurgent spirit of Italian cinema found in Il Divo. Paraguay doesn’t have a film industry, and this film is the first completely Paraguayan offering in decades, but Italy has lost most of its power-house status that it earned in the 60s and 70s.

Rob Hunter loves movies. He also loves working for the BBC where his job entails erasing old show master tapes because they don’t have the foresight to know that people may want to watch them again someday. These two joys come together in the form of cash money payments that he receives every week and immediately uses to buy more DVDs. This week… Monty Python, Orphan, Stan Helsing, and more!