The American Backyard


The American Backyard is a 2024 Italian gothic horror film written and directed by Pupi Avati, based on his 2023 novel of the same name. It premiered at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on 7 September 2024 as the festival's closing film.

Premise

In 1940s Bologna, a troubled young man falls in love with an American nurse, Barbara. The following year, he travels to the American Midwest and settles next door to Barbara's mother, who hasn't heard from her daughter since the end of the war, leading the man to embark on a tense search for her.

Cast

Regarding the macabre crimes in his film, Avati stated, "I didn't invent anything. These are stories that happened from the Monster of Florence to now. It's the least inventive and most realistic part. I'm more interested in the psychological and psychiatric part. Mine is a story of enormous and extreme loneliness. The protagonist is the loneliest man there is." Principal photography took place in Rome, Ferrara, Ravenna, and Forlì, as well as Davenport, Iowa, in the United States. Filming began in December 2023 and continued into 2024.

Release

A teaser trailer was released on 26 August 2024. The film closed the 81st Venice International Film Festival on 7 September 2024.

Reception

Davide Abbatescianni of Cineuropa called the film "a truly over-the-top noir gothic thriller, unsettling and ridiculous". Emanuele Di Nicola of Cinematografo.it gave the film three-and-a-half out of five stars, calling it "an arcane and mysterious story, a tale of fear that is also a declaration of being". Alessia Pelonzi of Badtaste called the film "fascinating but unresolved". Paola Casella of Mymovies.it gave the film two-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote, "Avati is, as always, very skilled at creating suspended atmospheres, even if here he risks disorientation." On the other hand, A.S. Chianese of Nocturno gave the film four-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote, "The American Backyard testifies to Avati's firm will to handle at all costs that refined film material that went to compose the American horror classics."

Awards and nominations