Rome's once working-class and
increasingly trendy Trastevere district will "lose its soul" if
the historic Cinema America is pulled down amid rising
gentrification, the New York Times said in a long article on the
threat to the character of the neighbourhood.
The article, entitled An Old Cinema Tests Rome's Stance on
Gentrification, said "the continuing story of the Cinema America
theater has become central to the narrative of a gentrifying
neighborhood that some said was at risk of losing its soul.
"Over the years, Trastevere has changed from a neighborhood
of port workers and laborers, along with some seedier sorts (a
character called the "trasteverino" helps Edmond Dantés exact
his revenge in "The Count of Monte Cristo").
"Today Trastevere's craggy, cobblestone streets are overrun
with tourists. Restaurants and bars have muscled out more
traditional shops and local artisans. Many apartments are now
run as bed-and-breakfasts or turned for cash".
The article said the encroachment of tourism has angered many
residents.
That is why the battle to save the Cinema America "has
revitalized the neighborhood," said Guido Hermanin, president of
the Associazione Progetto Trastevere, which has been fighting to
preserve the theater.
It was occupied by students for two years until 2014, since
when the protesters have taken their campaign to keep it open to
the streets of an area identified with cinema history.
"Trastevere was known as the cinema district," Hermanin said.
The well-known actor Alberto Sordi was born just off the
Piazza San Cosimato, the director Sergio Leone lived in the
area, and directors Nanni Moretti and Bernardo Bertolucci still
do, he noted.
The campaigners have organised a summer open-air cinema
season to keep up interest in their drive.
The final film shown in the outdoor cinema this year was
Gianni Di Gregorio's sweet comedy, "Pranzo di Ferragosto," or
"Mid-August Lunch," which was coincidentally set in Trastevere,
and included a local actor or two.
"You've done something marvelous," the director told the
organizers and spectators before the screening of the film.
"The youth of the Cinema America are doing something
important. Not just for Trastevere but for Rome and for Italy."
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