Many Beautiful Things

'Tanti Beddi Cosi' ('Many Beautiful Things') is the Sicilian expression used to wish people the best of things. 'Many beautiful things' are what entered actor Vincent Schiavelli's life when he chose to change his residence to the mountain village of his ancestors. He is known for his roles in Ghost by Jerry Zucker, and in One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, Taking Off, and Amadeus, all by Milos Forman. The documentary explores Schiavelli's surprising return to Polizzi Generosa, a place he only knew from tales told by his grandfather, who had been a master chef at a local aristocrat's household. Schiavelli grew up in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn, on streets full of Sicilian immigrants, many from his grandfather's village. The film reconstructs the major events in the actor's relationship with Polizzi Generosa, a city-state in the Madonie mountains, historically important because of its strategic location at the hub of the most important Sicilian junctions, north/south and east/west axis. This story is told through interviews of the actor's closest friends in the village, people who were changed by him: Nino Gianfisco, Renata Pucci di Benisichi, Santo Lipani, Salvo Cuccia, Katia Vitale and Mimmo Cuticchio. It is a journey inside Schiavelli's world - his private, public and artistic life. The interviewees are witnesses to a story that unexpectedly happened to them. Their words, together with the archive material, paint an unforgettable portrait of the actor from his first arrival to Sicily until his death and burial in the village on December 26th 2005.