Dozens of Maseratis designs from the 1920s and 1930s were built specifically for a movie about the early days of the Italian car company, featuring a cast of Anthony Hopkins.
Maserati: The Brothers tells the story of siblings driven by their love of cars to create an automotive company from scratch. It all started in a small garage in the Italian city of Bologna: in 1914 they founded a sports supercar company that produced some of the fastest vehicles on the planet.
Around 60 cars were made for the film, with a budget of more than £90m invested, far more than most independent films.
Hopkins, who has a passion for classic cars, plays a key role as the Italian financier who bankrolls the Maserati brothers. The Oscar-winning actor said it was “an intriguing, strong character to portray”.
The film was directed by another Oscar winner, Bobby Moresco, who described it as “a story of resilience, innovation and the human spirit”. The cast also includes Al Pacino, Michelle Morone, Andy Garcia and Jessica Alba.
Set in the early 20th century Italywhich focuses on older brother Carlo, the ambitious Alfieri and their siblings Bindo, Ettore and Ernesto, as they pursue the idea of building innovative cars that combine art and technology.
Tensions rise with financial hardship, racing accidents and a forbidden love affair. Carlo tries to unite the family around the shared goal of founding Maserati, but dies of tuberculosis before he can see his dream come true. Alfieri dreams of racing and winning prestigious competitions, but he dies in 1932 from complications from injuries sustained years earlier in a crash.
The film was produced by Andrea Irvolino, an Italian-Canadian who has become one of Hollywood’s leading independent filmmakers, working with some of the industry’s biggest stars, including the acclaimed Pacino. The Merchant of Venice.
Irvolino said of Hopkins: “He was artistically involved in the film. He worked a lot on the script. He even changed his own lines to give a good message. So he really cares about this film. Sometimes when you work with such a big star, they only care about the paycheck. But this is not the case. Anthony is a truly amazing artist.
“He plays a very important role in the film because at that time you could be a dreamer, but you had to find someone with money. It was difficult to find someone with money at that time because the financial industry was not as developed as it is today.”
Although Hopkins plays an Italian character, he does not speak with an Italian accent. Irvolino said: “I think the only problem is faking the accent. For example, they did too much in the Gucci movie. If you want to see a real Italian, it’s better to shoot a movie in Italian. Why do you have to fake an accent with an artist of this caliber? It’s a little bit okay, but you’ve become too serious.
Italy is known for its high-performance cars, with marques such as Maserati, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Alfa Romeo and Lancia.
Irvolino produced two other well-received motoring films: the Morescos Lamborghini: The Man Behind the Legendand Michael Mann’s Ferrari Starring Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz. He is also planning on a Bugatti.
“Italy is – and is – like the Silicon Valley of cars,” he said. “Maserati, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Lancia… if you go from Bologna to Milan, that’s where all these car manufacturing companies come from. At that time, everyone dreams of the fastest car, the number one car, the most luxurious car. But not many people know the history behind it. The movie genre.”
The cars were built in a workshop authorized by Maserati. The exteriors are original designs but their engines meet modern standards while recreating the original sounds.
The movie is planned to release in theaters later this year.
