Giuseppe Tornatore, director of the beloved CINEMA PARADISO, turns his camera on his longtime collaborator Ennio Morricone (1928 – 2020) in a moving and comprehensive profile of the indefatigable composer. Tornatore’s documentary portrait explores the breadth of the maestro’s career, from his early Italian pop songs to the fistful of unforgettable film scores that he wrote, including THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY, THE THING, DAYS OF HEAVEN, and hundreds of others. This examination thoughtfully captures insightful commentary from Morricone’s closest collaborators and contemporaries, featuring testimonies from artists and directors such as Bernardo Bertolucci, Marco Bellocchio, Giuliano Montaldo, Dario Argento, Clint Eastwood, Joan Baez, Quentin Tarantino, and more. ENNIO affords the master one last chance to recount his career and deconstruct the artistic process that led him to win two Academy Awards and author over 500 unforgettable soundtracks.
New York Times Critic's Pick
Manohla Dargis
The New York Times
“A painstakingly detailed, fantastically entertaining… deep dive”
Leslie Felperin
The Guardian
“Giuseppe Tornatore’s rapturous paean to his late collaborator, Ennio Morricone… its fascination never flags."
Stephanie Bunbury
Deadline
“An ideal tribute.”
Danny Leigh
Financial Times
“A great mosaic of cinema and music.”
Saskia Lloyd Gaiger
Little White Lies
“If any film composer demands such an epic doc, it’s this one. [The film] offers real engagement with a complicated character, endearingly stubborn and self-effacing, whose inventiveness changed both his chosen field (“absolute” music) and the one, film scoring, he entered only reluctantly. ENNIO leaves one wanting to rewatch dozens of movies, dig up more for the first time, and scour the internet for Italian pop records that may never have been released on these shores.”
John DeFore
The Hollywood Reporter
Winner, Silver Ribbon of the Year
Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists 2022
Winner, Best Documentary
David di Donatello Awards 2022