The Eight Mountains

About this Film

An epic journey of friendship and self-discovery set in the breath-taking Italian Alps, The Eight Mountains follows across four decades the profound, complex relationship between Pietro and Bruno. After meeting as children over a series of summers, Pietro and Bruno reunite as adults to build a mountainside cottage which becomes a site of both reflection and reconciliation. Marked by mystery, passion and rivalry along the way, this bittersweet drama is ultimately about a search for shared purpose for two individuals travelling divergent paths on the vertiginous terrain of life.

Adapted from the novel of the same name by Paolo Cognetti, the film premiered in competition at the 75th Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize, tying with EO. At Italy’s annual David di Donatello Awards in 2023, The Eight Mountains won four prizes, including Best Italian Film, amongst numerous accolades.

The Eight Mountains is a deeply intelligent meditation on our capacity for love, and how it is shaped by the arbitrary, irreversible experiences of childhood, and by our relationship with the landscape. It is a movie with air in its lungs and love in its heart! Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Reviews

Glorious and perhaps perfect, The Eight Mountains, contains the sweep of entire lives and loves as high as its spectacular alpine scenery
Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service

Thematically simple yet emotionally complex, this character-driven Italian drama is a compelling and richly textured glimpse into the inextricable bonds of friendship and the relationship between humans and nature.
Sheila O’Malley, RogerEbert.com

The Eight Mountains will rip your heart out. Gorgeous, profound, and natural as the day is long.
Carlos Boyero, El Pais

Sweeping and delivered with grace, “The Eight Mountains” is a patient, uncommonly tender triumph.
Paul Whitington, Irish Independent