Harvey Keitel transforms into a guru named Marpa, who becomes the spiritual guide of a young girl named Mila (played by “Les Miserables” actor Isabelle Allen), in Italian director Louis Nero’s futuristic drama “Milarepa.”
Set in a “no tech” near future, the English-language indie film – with a cast also comprising F. Murray Abraham, Angela Molina, Franco Nero (no relation to the director), Mexico’s Iazua Larios (“Sundown”) and Italy-based Japanese actor Hal Yamanouchi (“The Wolverine”) – just wrapped principle photography on the island of Sardinia, where it made ample use of its ancient megalithic stone constructions, dunes and craggy landscapes. See an exclusive first-look image of Keitel above.
“Milarepa” is a co-production between the director’s L’Altrofilm shingle, British producer Jake Seal’s Black Hunger Studio and Louisiana-based Orwo Studio USA. Orwo Distribution is handling international sales.
The story is inspired by the famous yogi, poet and Buddhist saint called Milarepa, who lived in the 11thcentury and on whose life Herman Hesse based the novel“Siddartha.”
On a timeless Mediterranean island, 12-year-old Mila’s peaceful and simple existence in her family home is disrupted when her father is killed due to an act of cruelty over inheritance money involving her aunt Khulan (Angela Molina). Driven by a desire for revenge, Mila is convinced by her mother Daka (Iazua Lariuos) to travel far away to learn magical arts that can only be taught to men. Mila therefore disguises herself as a boy “tofind the true knowledge and magic needed to exact revenge on her father’s family for enslaving her and her mother and stealing their home,” reads the synopsis.
Then, after managing to exact revenge, Mila feels terrible and goes to the famous guru Marpa (Keitel) “to atone for her despicable actions.”
In a statement, director Louis Nero (“The Broken Key”) called “Milarepa” a reimagining of the science-fiction genre in which “after the failure of technology, the human being returns to be at the center of the story, symbolically opposing the ephemerality of material things.”
