Bill Emmott the former director of The Economist and long term thorn in Berlusconi’s side since he was unsuccessfully sued for libel  after the magazine’s front cover said he was unfit to lead in Italy back in 2001, has made a film. The documentary about Italy and its ailing economy and woeful politics is called Girl in a Coma. Emmott travels the length of the country from Turin to Calabria, but the film has several scenes in and around Orvieto.

To illustrate his arguments he pretends Dante is his guide down into the underworld. After starting with a visit to the celebrated frescoes in Orvieto cathedral by Signorelli showing dramatic scenes of Paradise and Inferno as well as graphic images of the Almighty smiting sinners, he descends into the Stygian gloom of St Patrick’s Well. The final scenes of the film are at Vulci  with animated figures, the sufferers of Dante’s Inferno, walking the lake.

But don’t let Emmott’s fascinating documentary put you off coming here! What Italy does best never changes: the friendliness and glamour of the people, the art, the history and culture, the lifestyle. the food, and wine, the sheer beauty and variety of the place. Emmott made the film because he loves the place as do we.

For more information about Girlfriend in a Coma

Discover for yourself the dark secrets of Orvieto, Tuscany and Vulci with a Camera Etrusca photography tour.

 

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