Trailer
Assistive Technologies

Martin Eden

Runtime
2hrs 9mins
Directed by
Pietro Marcello
Featuring
Luca Marinelli, Jessica Cressy, Vincenzo Nemolato
Film Language
Italian
Body

Through our Virtual Screening Room, you can rent films curated by the Coolidge team, while helping to support the Coolidge during this unprecedented time.

Adapted from a 1909 novel by Jack London yet set in a provocatively unspecified moment in Italy’s history, Martin Eden is a passionate and enthralling narrative fresco in the tradition of the great Italian classics. Martin (played by the marvelously committed Luca Marinelli) is a self-taught proletarian with artistic aspirations who hopes that his dreams of becoming a writer will help him rise above his station and marry a wealthy young university student (Jessica Cressy). The dissatisfactions of working-class toil and bourgeois success lead to political awakening and destructive anxiety in this enveloping, superbly mounted bildungsroman.

watch now

Plus, watch a short introduction from star Luca Marinelli below:

Having technical issues? Visit our FAQ page here.

Reviews
Review Text

An absolute blast. Includes documentary footage, wealthy decadence, left-wing politics, angry speeches (in Italian!), beautiful women, square-jawed men, quotations from Baudelaire and the heroic deployment of manual typewriters, hand-rolled cigarettes, ascots and Volvo sedans. Everything I love in movies, more or less.

Review Author
A.O. Scott
Review Publication
The New York Times
Review Text

One of the most epic-feeling Italian movies in years, A throwback to '70s-era big-canvas statements. Lead actor Luca Marinelli, rousing in every scene, comes within hailing distance of the young Robert De Niro.

Review Author
Joshua Rothkopf
Review Publication
Time Out New York
Review Text

A kaleidoscopic historical fantasia that seems possessed by the ghosts of italian cinema.

Review Author
Imogen Sara Smith
Review Publication
Film Comment

This Week

  • All Moviehouse 1 screenings presented in VistaVision!

    Showtimes
  • From Emmy® Award-winning filmmaker Poh Si Teng.

    Showtimes
  • The movie ACME didn't want you to see!

    Showtimes
  • From director Matt Johnson (Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie), starring Dominic Sessa (The Holdovers). 

    Showtimes
  • The debut narrative feature from Lance Oppenheim, starring Robert Pattinson as Chris Hansen.

    Showtimes
  • Documentarian John Wilson applies lessons from a Hallmark movie writing workshop to pitch a documentary about concrete.

    Showtimes
  • Dangerous Curves: The Cultural Menace of Women’s Bodies in Horror

    Showtimes
  • A film by Josef Kubota Wladyka, starring Rinko Kikuchi.

    Showtimes
  • Featuring a special pre-show performance by Fortuna 500!

    Showtimes
  • He's Never Been To Earth. He's Never Even Slept Over Some Other Dude's House.

    Showtimes
  • Mahershala Ali stars in the new film from writer-director Bassam Tariq.

    Showtimes
  • Come for a night. Stay forever.

    Showtimes
  • Cultivating the magic of connection through variety arts, music, laughter and wonder, with unforgettable memories for kids "AND people!"

    Showtimes
  • This swan song by multi-hyphenate filmmaker Guru Dutt matches showbiz drama with stunning black-and-white cinematography.

    Showtimes
  • Leviathan and deep rising aboard the sea witch

    A sea creature double feature on the USS Salem!

    Showtimes
  • A young woman is followed by an unknown supernatural force after a sexual encounter.

    Showtimes
  • Director Henk Handloegten joins us in-person for a sneak preview of the first two episodes of the final season of the lavish historical crime drama.

    Showtimes
  • A film by Cristian Mungiu, winner of the 2026 Palme d’Or. 

    Showtimes
  • Is this the man she was waiting for... or the man who was waiting for her?

    Showtimes
  • Boston's one and only open mic night for filmmakers!

    Showtimes
  • The newest attorney at the world's most powerful law firm has never lost a case. But he's about to lose his soul.

    Showtimes