The beauty of the Tuscan countryside is the center of “Stealing Beauty”, film that has turned 30

“Stealing Beauty”, the iconic 1995 film that turns 30 this year, directed by the brilliant eye of Bernardo Bertolucci, one of the greatest directors in Italian cinema, was the star of a special screening (sponsored by the Consorzio Chianti Classico, the territory and its villas, between Medieval Siena and Renaissance Florence, is a candidate for UNESCO World Heritage status, ed.), in the unique setting of Piazza del Campo, in Siena. The film highlights the iconic Tuscan landscape and its Chianti Classico hills, olive groves, vineyards, and cypress trees as well as the carefree and wild freedom of youth, there is sex and love, and a beautiful, new actress, Liv Tyler, who will become famous because of this film. Special guests included Oscar winning actor Jeremy Irons, one of the film’s stars, along with film producer, Thomas Jeremy.
“Like many English people, I think Tuscany is one of the most beautiful places to live in the world”, Jeremy Irons told WineNews in an interview. “It has beautiful scenery, a mild climate, and excellent wine, excellent food, and even a coastline. I love the water, in this heat, and I like sailing, but inland, there couldn’t be a more beautiful place than this, like Florence, and especially Siena, which I hold dear to my heart”. And, like many English people and the rest of the world, the great British actor said he also loves Italian cuisine and wine, and that “at home I eat Italian food and drink Italian wine”, such as, among others, Chianti Classico - of course - citing wines like “Badia a Coltibuono”, and adding that he loves “pasta. I love aglio e olio, very simple, and pasta al pomodoro”. The 1991 Oscar award winner for Best Actor for “Reversal of Von Bulow”, directed by Barbet Schroeder and starring Glenn Close, also confessed that he doesn’t cook, except for “excellent scrambled eggs”. Irons has starred in films that have made cinematic history, directed by some of the world’s illustrious directors, and therefore it is truly impossible to list even a few of them. When we asked whether he’d like to shoot a new film in another wine region, in the future, or, who knows, perhaps even in Chianti Classico, Irons told us that, “unfortunately, being a great wine region isn’t one of the reasons producers and directors choose where to shoot a film…”.
The special screening of “Stealing Beauty” in Siena’s Piazza del Campo, in collaboration with the Municipality of Siena and the Bernardo Bertolucci Foundation, was to celebrate a film worthy of revisiting, light-hearted and profound, inspired by the extraordinary Tuscan landscape of Chianti Classico, one of the most celebrated examples of romantic beauty (and whose Consortium donated a commemorative bottle to the actors with their names), and having a poignant soundtrack with a stellar cast. “Stealing Beauty” premiered in competition at the 49th Cannes Film Festival, where it received a Palme d’Or nomination.
“Promoting a new cinematic language represents a unique opportunity to admire our territory, combining the charm of history, tradition, and spirituality in its countless churches, abbeys, and castles. These itineraries will invite guests of the “Terra di Siena International Film Festival” and tourists to experience not only excellent cinema- being entertained by national and international premieres - but also the extraordinary landscape that Bernardo Bertolucci so beautifully depicted in this film”, Maria Pia Corbelli, creator of the historic festival, explained.
The film’s anniversary celebration was held in a triumphant setting in what is considered the most beautiful square in the world, a setting for classic cinema that has become part of cinematic history. It was an eventful evening, a premiere clearly awaiting the “Terra di Siena International Film Festival” (October 7-11 2025).