Those Happy Years (Anni felici) (Anni felici)

This is me...

Gimme a kiss.

Serena and Guido, my parents.

From behind, my brother Paolo.

The history of my family in the summer of '74.

- Do you know Pirate Dog? - Sure, the one in the ads.

Good kid!

Show us.

- Great! - Like it?

Where did you buy it?

What? I draw him.

- Didn't you tell him? - Go make some real art!

Like it?

He makes me laugh every time.

Good, I'm glad.

I make art: paintings, sculptures and drawings.

Because you lack the courage to take a stand,

or you'd do just one thing,

but you don't want to take a critical stand.

I minister to body and soul, my dear.

- Can't we watch? - No, outside!

- C'mon, can't we stay? - Get moving!

Can we at least smash the car outside?

Sure, here are some tools.

You go smash the car too.

- Out! - Please, five minutes...

Please...

Hey kid, what are you doing?

- Our dad said we could. - Who are you?

- Who are you? - Who am I?

I'm your damn ticket to hell!

Shove off, you witch!

THOSE HAPPY YEARS

Five minutes.

Strange things happened in my father's studio:

liquid plaster became solid,

scaffolding became figurines and things turned into other things.

It came easy to him,

so he thought it was wrong.

- Is this okay? - There's a fly.

He wanted to be an avant-garde artist at all costs.

Why did he have this ambition and not the one within reach,

simply to be a happy person?

Don't move!

If all actors, sculptors, painters and singers

disappeared from the face of the Earth,

no one would ever know it.

Want the truth? I'd like to be like he was.

What was he like?

Nasty.

- Now? - Wait.

Can I?

Kids, let's not tell Mom I worked with a nude model today.

Yeah, or she'll jump on it!

- Let's avoid... - Useless arguing.

Painting, sculpting, shaping a figure

makes no sense today.

Who says? This artist.

- Who is this artist? - Piero Manzoni.

Piero Manzoni, good.

It's also written there, that's his signature.

Does anyone know who this is?

Yves Klein.

Yves Klein, good.

If, in Manzoni, the model was still, static,

here the bodies acquire time and space, they become action.

With Vito Acconci it's the body of the artist himself

which is the work of art.

In this case, his signature is a kiss,

in other cases, as we'll see, a bite

is his trademark.

Dad hasn't seen us.

Now I'd like to see who still wants to paint,

shape and sculpt.

See you...

See you tomorrow.

Couldn't you introduce me to your students?

Serena, I've said a thousand times

I don't like mixing work and family, so what do you do?

You show up at the Academy with the kids.

- And with that attitude... - What attitude?

- With your attitude... - What attitude?

You didn't want me to see how that girl looked at you.

- What girl? - That one there.

At the Academy? They're just kids!

C'mon, don't nag me today, today's a special day.

What's today?

Helke, the one I make the lamps for,

recommended me to the director of an important exhibition in Milan.

I've already sent the material,

he asked to meet me, the appointment's in 30 minutes.

Okay? Good girl.

I have to go.

Okay, see you at home later.

Bye, kids.

So, do we come too?

Didn't you hear me? No, you can't come!

There he is, that's the director.

Should we wait here?

Do we come or wait here?

- We'll wait for you... - I don't know!

I guess we'll leave...

What is it'?

Serena, does Guido get paid for this exhibition?

Money's the last thing for Dad.

- What's the first? - We are.

Then work.

So he can buy me a movie camera!

I wonder what pieces he'll take to Milan!

I like the sculpture of you as babies,

you look like angels.

But when he sees it, he says: conventional.

When Dad says "conventional" he means it sucks.

I know... conventional!

- Honey! - What are you doing here?

You told me...

We said we'd wait.

It's done, all the important critics will be there:

Rossi Zoldan, Fava, Tarantelli.

I have to work,

I'll lock myself in the studio and no distractions,

there's a month left.

- You've got tons of sculptures. - It's not for sculptures.

They're inviting artists to do a performance.

- Like what you showed your students? - Right.

Don't you think you should thank your friend?

Come on, I'll introduce you.

- Me too? - Come on!

Now I see why the children are so beautiful,

it's because of your wife.

Thank you, also for the favor to Guido.

Opportunity, it's not always a question of favors.

You're such a drag, it's clear what she meant.

This shop is nice, can I look around?

Sure.

Stop jumping! Don't touch that, it costs!

I'm really pleased about this Milan thing.

Guido did this.

And did Dad do this too?

Yes, that's Michelle and that's Gabriella.

Michelle and Gabriella...

Which one is more beautiful?

The Madonna.

No, this is figurative, what did I explain?

Let's try again.

Everything that's beautiful has to be new.

So, where's the beauty? Do you understand?

Who's this Michelle?

Answer me.

What's Michelle got to do with anything?

Please, I'm explaining something.

Answer me!

Come on, the one you like best! Forget what I said.

- That one! - This one? You just don't get it!

Between these?

The gold one.

Forget about it!

Why's the all-blue one pretty? I can do that too.

You can now, but you hadn't thought of it before,

so you didn't know how.

Think I don't know why that bed is in the studio?

For Gabriella and for Michelle!

You're making a scene over a model who helps me make lamps?

She helps you naked?

Who told her about Michelle?

Who told her about Michelle?

- Did you? - It was him!

Serena, look,

Picasso had three wives...

I've heard this so many times, I've had it!

He had three wives, four kids

but no one told him what to do!

Lower your voice!

No one told Picasso what to do!

Why don't you ever model my body?

I model it when I embrace you, you're my love,

you're not my work.

Anyway Michelle and Helke were together.

Really?

See who you're jealous of?

A woman who gets a mold of her ass

so the other can look at it all day in the shop.

You see, art and love are the same thing?

Shut up!

Shut up...

Shut up!

Don't look at me like that, I can't stay,

I have to work, I'm behind on the performance.

I understand, just don't get worked up.

- Who's worked up! - You are.

Guido underestimated Serena's superpowers.

Like in summer, when her family moved to the beach near Rome,

he planned to drop us there and go work alone in his studio,

at least for an afternoon.

My mother had her way of getting him to stay.

She wasn't particularly fond of art,

but she was crazy about the artist.

We were always there,

too bad no one noticed.

Come on!