Actress Penelope Cruz donned a curve-hugging black dress to open the Torino Film Festival on Friday.
The Spanish beauty was joined by Sergio Castellitto and Margaret Mazzantini, the director of her latest project currently filming in Turin and the author of the book on which the movie is based.
Unfortunately, Cruz was left in an awkward position when presenting an award to Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismaki on the opening night. The actress was set to present the director with the "Gran Torino" prize but ended up left alone on stage when Kaurismaki chose not to attend the ceremony. At a press conference the next day, the director arrived with a beer bottle in hand, comparing Cruz to a mannequin holding the award.
Despite the unexpected failed tribute to Kaurismaki, the opening events were warmly received, with the Italian premiere of Bennett Miller’s Moneyball kicking off the film selections.
The film festival, which is the second largest in Italy, will feature 217 titles, 32 of which are world premiers. Out of the total, 70 films are of Italian origin. The most anticipated Italian film is I Più Gradi di Tutti (The Biggest of Them All), a rock comedy by Carlo Virzì.
The 29th edition of the event runs until the 3rd of December and more information can be found by visiting the TFF site.
