CASANOVA Closing Night Gala

Acclaimed director Lasse Hallström (MY LIFE AS A DOG, CHOCOLAT, AN UNFINISHED LIFE) returns to AFI FEST (the US Premiere of THE CIDER HOUSE RULES opened AFI FEST 1999) with the North American Premiere of CASANOVA, a sharp, sophisticated comedy that gives the legend of Casanova a contemporary edge and a new twist.

Starring Heath Ledger as the notorious lothario, Casanova meets his ultimate romantic match in Francesca Bruni (Sienna Miller), a passionate writer and feisty sword-wielding young woman. Succumbing to the only woman ever to refuse his charms, Casanova must prove himself to be the one man worthy of her romantic ideals. Contributing priceless performances to this cinematic tour de force are Jeremy Irons, as the Inquisition’s Bishop Pucci, and Oliver Platt as Paprizzio, the bumbling “lard king” of Genoa.

Though Casanova’s life and loves have been explored in dozens of screen incarnations, he has never been seen in so essentially human a predicament: befuddled by his stolen heart and trying to become a better man. A playful exploration into the timeless conflicts between repression and sensuality, desire and love, CASANOVA is Hallström’s most delightfully romantic and comedic work to date.