MENEMSHA FILMS

Set in the picturesque, provincial town Ascoli Piceno in central Italy, The Shadow of the Day is a dramatic and gripping love story set in the late 1930s. Luciano, a wounded World War I veteran and a sympathizer with fascism, runs a classy restaurant overlooking the town’s ancient square. He believes he can live his life according to his own set of rules. In this bubble, he observes the world through the window of his pleasant restaurant. One day, Anna appears looking for work. A young woman with a dangerous secret, she is hired to work in his restaurant. Slowly, affection creeps in between the two and among the many dangers Luciano faces, including the onset of WWII, there is the greatest danger of all: love. Featuring an ensemble cast including Lino Musella (The Hand of God) and Vincenzo Nemolato (Gomorrah), Giuseppe Piccioni’s thoughtful melodrama reflects on fascism and the pre-war atmosphere of control and isolation.