“Ennio” by Giuseppe Tornatore

2021 · IT, BE, CH/JP · colour · It/en · 156′

Ennio is a well-rounded portrait of Ennio Morricone, the most popular and prolific film composer of the 20th century, the one most loved by the international public, a two-time Oscar winner and the author of over five hundred unforgettable scores.

Ennio is a complete portrait of Ennio Morricone — the most popular and prolific musician of the twentieth century, the most beloved by international audiences, a two-time Academy Award® winner, and the composer of over 500 unforgettable film scores.

The documentary tells his story through a long interview between Tornatore and the Maestro, alongside testimonies from artists and directors such as Bertolucci, Montaldo, Bellocchio, Argento, the Taviani brothers, Verdone, Barry Levinson, Roland Joffé, Oliver Stone, and Quentin Tarantino, as well as fiction scenes, music, and archival footage. Ennio is also an investigation aimed at revealing the lesser-known sides of Morricone — such as his passion for chess, which perhaps has mysterious ties to his music. It also uncovers the real-world origins of certain musical intuitions: the howl of the coyote that inspired the theme of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, or the rhythmic clapping of hands on tin drums by strikers at the head of a protest march through the streets of Rome, which inspired the beautiful theme of Sostiene Pereira. This gift for invention is confirmed by his enduring love of absolute music and his vocation for constant experimentation.