Danger Mouse, Daniele Luppi
Rome

Prologue: Rome, Montesacro, interior night. The pickup of a turntable slowly moves along the grooves on a thirty-three RPM record. Shot of the cartridge, the vibrations that excite it pass to the coil, are amplified and transferred along the cable of a pair of headphones. Shot of the vinyl detail, a cigarette still burning in an ashtray, figure sitting on the bed. Fading.

Opening Titles: Rome. Starring: Brian Joseph Burton aka Danger Mouse, Daniele Luppi. Guest stars: Jack White, Norah Jones. List of absolutely unknown names, the ones you never pay attention to in movies (who will then turn out to be collaborators of his majesty Ennio Morricone, Alessandro Alessandroni, Pietro Umiliani, and the Orchestra dei Cantori Moderni, just to name a few fools).

Five years of work on the original inspiration to create a tribute to the atmospheres of the glories of Italian cinema of the '50s-'60s, Dolce Vita, via Veneto, little black dresses, paparazzi, Sergio Leone, et cetera, et cetera. Danger Mouse flies directly to the capital, we like to imagine him waking up on Sunday morning to go to Porta Portese in search of strictly vintage instruments, and fully enjoy the beauté of the Signora, perhaps blessed by a beautiful sunny day, those that give warm colors and clear atmospheres. Cut. Crane shot from the zenith over the city, Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Mary in Piazza Euclide, Studi Forum. The camera frames Jack White from below, smoking next to the entrance of the Music Village. Long take: studios' corridor. On the walls, Fellini, Ettore Scola, Brian De Palma. Studio One detail tapes. Wide shot on the mixer, left cut on Norah Jones singing "Black" beyond the glass. She takes off the headphones. -Was it okay?- It’s fine. Last recording, thanks, the technicians dismantle everything, delivering thirty-five minutes of music to the producers. Cut. Coffee in Piazza Euclide. A journalist on the phone with the editorial office. -How much Morricone is in this album? Quite a bit, but it is all skillfully out of focus, strong suggestions but not defined: the sound of the guitars in "The World," sometimes the use of voices. I thought of "For a Few Dollars More," if we really have to mention a western, when I heard "Morning Fog," but it will be because of the carillon, the association was too easy. In reality, more than the western Morricone, the idea is that of dramatic films like "Metti una Sera a Cena" in the rest of the album: the truly noir one is "Roman Blue," which evokes largely metropolitan scenarios, nighttime city, chaos in the stations, follow-ups, bar counters, and various stuff. Images from Rome armed, but when heroes and antiheroes are tired of chasing each other. Is it a successful experiment? It has quality, but it is certainly not an album dedicated to the capital, excluding the original intent. An out of time experiment,the ideal soundtrack for a film yet to be written.-

Epilogue: Rome, Montesacro. A young director sitting at his desk prepares to write a story.

Scene I: Villa Borghese, Exterior Day, “Theme of Rome”. The tops of the pine trees sway in the wind. Descending panoramic. The camera descends along the trunk of a tree to discover a man sitting, his back resting against a pine. The man is well-dressed but bears the marks of a beating. He smokes. He holds a photo in his hands. Behind him, not far away, children play soccer. The camera zooms in on the man's face, who closes his eyes.

Scene II: Flashback. The man's memory, “The Rose With the Broken Neck”. Close-up, slightly blurred, a smiling girl in the villa. She plays with a fountain, splashing water towards the man.

Scene III: End Flashback, “Season’s Trees”. Medium shot. The children's ball bounces against the man. Full figure. The man stands up, throws the ball back to the children, and walks out of the villa. On the grass, he dropped a photo of the girl from the flashback. Tracking shot as he walks away. The man walks on the street. Subjective, he gazes at people's faces. Full figure. He enters a bookstore where the girl from the flashback photo works. She arranges the books on the shelves. She turns and sees him.

Scene IV: Flashback. Kitchen, interior evening, half-figure, “Two against One”. Slightly out of focus. During breakfast, the two argue. He has to leave. He looks in the mirror. He sees himself reflected and her yelling at him, crying. He leaves the house, slamming the door. She returns to sitting, resting her head in her hands. He in the elevator, full figure. He continues to see himself and her reflected. He gets into the car.

Scene V: Tracking shot, “The Gambling Priest”. Through nighttime Rome. He in the car. Tracking shot. Via Portuense. Three men await him. He stops the car and gets out. Medium shot. He approaches the men, returns some gaming chips and a gun. One of the three chuckles and walks away. The other two beat him. Scene VI: Bookstore, interior day. Close-up of her, perplexed. She tries to pretend nothing happened, continuing to arrange the books. He follows her, trying to talk to her, as if to apologize. She is shaken, feigns indifference. She drops some books.

Flashback. The memory of them making love. He helps her pick up the books. They look at each other. She hints a smile. Scene VII: Rome, exterior night. “The World”.

Let's end it with a look. Otherwise, too much syrup.