With La vita va così, Riccardo Milani delivers a comedy with a profound tone that reflects on the delicate balance between progress and identity. Presented as the opening film of the Festa del Cinema di Roma 2025, the Roman director returns to telling the story of the “people who stay”, this time choosing Sardinia as the setting for a story that combines irony, feeling and civic awareness.
On the still unspoilt coasts of the south of the island, two opposite worlds meet. On one side Efisio Mulas, a solitary shepherd living in harmony with his land; on the other Giacomo, a Milanese entrepreneur determined to build a luxury resort in the name of progress and profit. The stubborn resistance of Efisio, who refuses every offer rather than abandon his home, becomes the symbol of a wider battle, the one between those who defend their roots and those who sacrifice the past to chase the future.
Milani builds a social comedy that speaks of dignity, difficult choices and the value of memory. Amid breathtaking landscapes and dialogue alternating between lightness and intensity, the film reminds us that the land is not just a physical place but also a collective heritage to be preserved.
Virginia Raffaele surprises in a dramatic, measured and authentic role, while Diego Abatantuono offers a convincing performance as a man ruled by ambition. Milani’s direction, faithful to his empathetic and direct style, gently accompanies a story about roots, courage and responsibility. La vita va così does not merely depict a clash between past and future: it invites us to reflect on what we are willing to lose in the name of progress. It is a film that, with the simple, human language typical of its author, reminds us that “staying” can be an act of freedom.
The film is now in cinemas also in German-speaking Switzerland and Ticino with screenings in Italian in the following cities:
Arena Cinemas Basel: 6.00 pm (screen 7 – I), 8.25 pm (screen 2 – I)
Forum Bellinzona: 6.00 pm (screen – I)
CineStar Multicinema Lugano: 3.00 pm, 5.50 pm, 8.50 pm (screen 6 – I)
Multisala Mendrisio: 8.30 pm (screen – I)
youcinema Oftringen: 6.00 pm (screen 4 – I)
Arena Cinemas Zürich: 2.40 pm (screen 15 – I), 5.40 pm (screen 2 – I), 8.55 pm (screen 16 – I)
The great Italian films in cinemas in Switzerland with www.morandinifilm.com
