Italy is the symbol of romanticism. It is also a temple of rich stories ranging from great royal families to well-known mafia clans to the heart of the Catholic religion.
Magnificent landscapes, architecture that has survived the centuries, good food, everything is there to inspire creators. The south of Italy has been beautifully immortalized more than once in the cinema: The Godfather, Cinema Paradiso, Eat Pray Love and so many others. TV shows it to us in the past as well as in a more frontal or simply welcoming present. Here is Rome, Naples, and Sicily at our fingertips.
Rome
The Young Pope And The New Pope
The New Pope
Photo courtesy of HBO
In these series by Paolo Sorrentino starring Jude Law, we follow the rise of a young cardinal raised in a convent with a nonconformist nun. Elected pope at 47, he is in the crosshairs of manipulators. Without revealing anything, the second series sees a new pope arrive. While millions of people visit the Vatican each year, filming there is prohibited. Only the scenes of people massed in the area were filmed there. This is the case of the famous scene in The New Pope where John Malkovich greets his followers from his black popemobile. The monument was dubbed in the studio at Cinecitta Studios: a replica of the Sistine Chapel over 580 square feet that required 65 workers. Other scenes were shot in St. Peter’s Square with a view of the basilica of the same name, another mythical construction, as well as the hermitage of the Holy Spirit located further west in Abruzzo.
►Streamed on Crave
Suburra
Suburra
Photo courtesy of Netflix
St. Peter’s Square and Basilica also appear in this crime series, the first in Italian to be released on Netflix. We follow events inspired by real facts when the mafia had a stranglehold on political and religious dignitaries. A bloody struggle had broken out in the small seaside town of Ostia near Rome. We see in particular the Palazzo Senatorio where the town hall is located while the mayor is forced to resign. The half-built stadium really exists at the City of Sports near the University of Rome. The beachside residence of the Adami family, heads of organized crime in the region, is actually a restaurant, the Vecchia Pineta, in Ostia.
►Streamed on Netflix
Luna Park
Luna Park
Photo courtesy of Netflix
It’s 1960s Rome, when a young bourgeois woman befriends a nomadic fortune teller whose revelations will change the course of their lives. Luna Park is one of Italy’s oldest amusement parks. It is located in the northwest suburbs of the city. For the purposes of the series, it was recreated at Ostia’s Lido Park by the sea, where there were already rides. A replica of the original Ferris wheel has been mounted there.
►Streamed on Netflix
girl joy
girl joy
Photo courtesy of Netflix
While Runaway was successful with us, this Italian series aimed at teenagers and young adults approached much the same theme. We follow two friends who, to earn a quick buck, fall into prostitution. What seemed like an easy deal quickly spirals out of control. The Collodi college where the girls study is actually the engineering faculty of the University of Tor Vergata, on the outskirts of downtown Rome. Several scenes were shot in Parioli, an upscale neighborhood known for its palaces, villas and parks where rich and trendy people live. The nightlife is very lively here. Chiara and Ludovica often meet there to go clubbing.
►Streamed on Netflix
Rome
Rome
Photo courtesy of HBO
The two seasons of this historical series retrace the events of the Gallic Wars, the assassination of Julius Caesar, and Octave’s fight against Marc-Antoine. We are in the 50s BC. Very expensive series, due to its historical reconstruction, it was shot mainly in the studio in Rome and Sofia in Bulgaria. Ancient Rome has been reproduced there with its markets and monuments. The creator of the series claims that the city, at that time, looked more like Bombay or Calcutta. In four months, the team built the city on five acres. From that time, you can still see the Colosseum and the Pantheon as well as some forums that have stood the test of time and have become symbols of the capital.
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Naples
The prodigious friend
The prodigious friend
Photo courtesy of HBO
Literary saga of Elena Ferrante brought to the screen, we follow the journey of two childhood friends, Lila and Elena, whose life trajectories will be different while one continues her studies and the other does not. We are in Luzzatti, a popular district of Naples. To give it back its 1960s color, certain streets in Caserta, an industrial area further north, have been reproduced over more than 20,000 meters. Library, bridge, church, school, everything is there. Those passing through Luzzatti will see piazzas dei Martiri, Plebiscito and Municipio, Chiaia, Posilipo and Tasso streets, the Principe Gallery, and then Port’Alba, where Elena developed her passion for books. From Naples, we take a boat to the island of Ischia where the summer holidays were spent, far from the cries and the precariousness.
►broadcast on Club illico
Gomorra
The Savastano family dominates the Neapolitan mafia. Another clan, led by a younger generation, grows and pushes Don Pietro, the leader of the criminals, to review his way of doing things and think about his succession. This series in five seasons was mainly shot in Scampia, in the suburbs, and in downtown Naples
►broadcast on Club illico and Apple tv+
The lying life of adults
The lying life of adults
Photo courtesy of Netflix
Another novel by Elena Ferrante adapted as a series. They say that to tolerate our existence, we must lie, even to ourselves. This is the basis of this story set in the 1990s where a teenager hears her father compare her to her aunt, whom she wants to get closer to. The series immerses us in the region of Campania, in Naples more precisely. You can recognize the Palace of Congresses (Cubo d’Oro), the Casa del Portuale (museum) and the port of Naples.
►Streamed on Netflix
Sicily
The white lotus 2
The white lotus
Photo courtesy of HBO
It’s hard not to mention the magnificent setting in which season 2 immerses us. We find wealthy vacationers whose flaws and false appearances we discover. Getaway that will lead to the death of one of the protagonists (I don’t reveal anything). The main action takes place at the San Domenico Palace which is in fact the Four Seasons of Taormina in the northeast of Sicily. You can get there, but be aware that a room costs 3000 euros (about $4350) a night. You will have to pay double for a suite such as we see in the series. For 23 euros ($33), however, you can sip a negroni at the bar where Mia and Lucia hang out. The magnificent villa that Daphne rents in Noto in episode 3 is actually Villa Tasca which is in Palermo. It can be rented on Airbnb for around 4,000 euros ($5,800) a night.
►Streamed on Crave
The taste of life
The taste of life
Photo courtesy of Netflix
This romantic miniseries with Zoe Saldana recounts the encounter between an American artist and an Italian chef when illness disrupts their love story which takes them to two continents. We therefore see Los Angeles, but also Sicily and more precisely the small port city of Cefalú in the very north of the island, west of Palermo.
►Streamed on Netflix