La profezia dell'armadillo

La profezia dell'armadillo (lit. 'The Prophecy of the Armadillo') is a 2018 Italian comedy-drama film directed by Emanuele Scaringi.

The film is loosely based on the 2011 graphic novel of the same name by Zerocalcare. It premiered on 3 September 2018 at the 75th Venice International Film Festival in the "Horizons" section, and was released in Italy on 13 September 2018.

Plot
Zero is a 27-year-old man living in Rebibbia, a neighborhood in the periphery of Rome. He spends his days in the company of his mother and his lifelong friend Secco, as well as conversing with his own critical conscience in the form of an anthropomorphic armadillo. An aspiring cartoonist, Zero makes a living as a steward in an airport and as a private tutor for a wealthy eight-grader. One night, he is devastated to learn by email that Camille, a childhood crush from Toulouse to whom he never confessed his love, has died as a result of anorexia. After telling the news to his mother and Secco, Zero has recurrent flashbacks of their time together.

Years before, as children, Zero meets Camille at a party. Though the initial encounter is brief, Zero meets her again while traveling by bus to an exhibit about Japanese culture. After she is briefly detained for not having paid the ride, they soon hit it off at the exhibit. Camille is soon introduced to Zero's group along with Secco and Greta, the latter being another friend of theirs at the time, now estranged. Bonding over by hanging out, partying and camping, at one point the four vow to always live in the present. Camille moves back to Toulouse after she turns 15. When she comes to Rome to visit Zero, she confesses that she misses her old life. Just as Zero attempts to both console and become intimate with her, the Armadillo shows up offering his guidance. Rejecting his help, the Armadillo is left in the corridor, in the presence of another mental entity—which is dark and sinister, personifying Camille's declining mental health.

In the present, Zero and Secco attempt to learn about Greta's whereabouts. They eventually find her, but after more than ten years, Greta is virtually unrecognizable, having become a superficial socialite and married a lawyer. Greta reveals that she and Camille have long grown apart as well and does not profess much interest in attending her funeral.

The film also follows situations in which Zero fails to uphold or outright violates his own values, often being reprimanded by the Armadillo as a result. These include his actions resulting in him and a coworker at the airport being fired, lying about his skills in a job interview to become a graphic designer and breaking their vow by attempting to regain a sweater in a fit of nostalgia. In addition, the student that he tutored is sent to a monastery after experiencing a religious calling, ultimately inspired by Zero's own talks about politics and ethics, thus making him unemployed. At that point, the Armadillo explains what his "prophecy" refers to—in essence, any overtly optimistic and rationalized hope one might hold, despite all reason.

Zero and Secco arrange to meet Camille's family in Toulouse for the ceremony. After acting as a translator for Secco, Zero plays one of Camille's favorite songs and expresses his unappeasable frustration and powerlessness at her death. Back in Rome, Zero wanders among the streets, reminiscing his time with Camille. He is woken up by the Armadillo after spending the night on a bench, who immediately resumes to berate him as usual and demand radical changes in his behavior. At first, Zero is merely irritated, but begins furiously beating up the Armadillo for affirming that Camille actually liked Secco over him.

After reconciling, Zero apologizes to the Armadillo and begins his new job as a graphic designer. Although the Armadillo is proud of him for being on the way of becoming a respectable adult, he also warns Zero against compromising his values for the job's sake. The film ends with the moment when Zero, Secco, Greta and Camille make their vow, accompanied by a voiceover from the adult Zero reflecting on their lives.

Cast

 * Simone Liberati as Zero, a socially conscious, aspiring cartoonist shifting between temporary jobs. His name is short for Zerocalcare, the pen name of real-life author Michele Rech, of whom he is a self-insert.
 * Valerio Ardovino as young Zero
 * Valerio Aprea as Armadillo, Zero's own relentlessly contrarian conscience, personified as a talking animal.
 * Pietro Castellitto as Secco, Zero's childhood friend, who regularly maces himself with pepper spray in an attempt to develop resistance to it.
 * Matteo Giordani as young Secco
 * Laura Morante as Zero's mother, who is hopeful that her son will eventually find a stable job.
 * Sofia Staderini as Camille, a girl of French background who unknowingly becomes Zero's love interest during her time in Italy. Years after returning to Toulouse, her mental issues result in her dying from anorexia.
 * Diana Del Bufalo as Greta, a childhood friend of Zero's group who later becomes distant from them.
 * Bianca Di Veroli as young Greta
 * Samuele Biscossi as Blanka, the student that Zero ineffectively tutors. He is eventually enthralled by his talks with Zero about societal issues and finds a religious vocation.
 * Claudia Pandolfi as Blanka's mother
 * Teco Celio and Marcella Nardini as Mr. and Mrs. Panatta, Zero's neighbors downstairs. Mr. Panatta confronts Zero about the noise he makes in his flat.
 * Marianna Di Martino as Danieli, a stably employed hostess at the airport who is fired after Zero informs the manager about her wasting time on the phone, in an unsuccessful attempt to gain a better position.
 * Stefano Scherini as the airport manager
 * Vincent Candela as Camille's father
 * Gianmarco Vettori as Camille's cousin
 * Ugo De Cesare as Max, Guglielmo Poggi as Piergiorgio and Federica Zacchia as Ludovica, Greta's affluent friends
 * Kasia Smutniak and Marco Giuliani as the street cleaners. Secco feels attracted to Kasia's character and spies on her while she works for weeks, until both cleaners get fed up and call the police.
 * Adriano Panatta as himself, who is interviewed by Zero at the airport for a questionnaire.
 * Gianluca Gobbi as the hippie Zero robs a sweater that he supposedly lent Greta from.
 * Valentina Correani as Gina, a waitress 5 years older than Zero and Secco.
 * Valentino Campitelli and Emanuele Linfatti as the billstickers
 * Giulia Valentini and Michela De Rossi as the downtown girls Zero and Secco unsuccessfully attempt to flirt with at a party.
 * Fabrizio Colica as the "vampire guy", with whom Zero shares a brief conversation after being rejected by the downtown girls.

Soundtrack
A soundtrack album was released in 2020.

Themes
Both the film and the graphic novel are fictionalized autobiographies that depict various aspects of everyday life through Rech's own experiences. The story's main focus is how close friendships might come to an end, either by death or by simply growing distant. Another major theme is the financial vulnerability and lack of career prospects of Rech's generation. The film's director stated, "It is the places where ordinary people live [Rebibbia] that interest me. An unusual part of the city, not the picture-postcard centre – where Zero and Secco refuse to go – but a metropolis of the world where the social classes are mixed up."