A nice uplifting film if you want to watch something with depth without feeling too heavy.
Classmates (Domani interrogo) screens as part of the 2026 ST. ALi Italian Film Festival more information about the festival is available here: The ST. ALi Italian Film Festival is coming soon to cinemas!
Read the Glam Adelaide story about the festival here: The ST. ALi Italian Film Festival – Glam Adelaide
Directed and co-produced by Umberto Riccioni Carteni, with the story set in a high school in Rebibbia, a working-class neighbourhood on the outskirts of Rome, Classmates is based on Gaja Cenciarelli’s autobiographical novel of the same name.
I found it interesting knowing that the story came from an autobiographical novel, and it did feel quite realistic in the way it portrayed the teacher Professoré (Anna Ferzetti), the students and their relationships. It wasn’t just a story about a teacher trying to control a difficult class, but more about the environments in which everyone lives, and how it affects their options in life. The film has a wider message.
It kind of reminded me a bit of the Michelle Pfeiffer film Dangerous Minds (1995), but I thought this film was much better because it focused on the connections between the teacher and the students and the camaraderie of the classmates together. I also felt that this film was less violent and less emotionally manipulative, while still creating enough tension. It’s more about the camaraderie among the students, rather than the story being primarily about the teacher “saving” them. Violence was kept to a minimum.
There were really two plots. One was the story of the professor’s personal life prior to starting at the school, and then there was the story of the class and whether they would make it to the final exam. I found the scenes where the director froze a moment as particular students were introduced, with the write-up explaining what happens to them in the future, to be very effective. It allowed me to see the bigger picture without spoiling the story or the plot at all. This cinematic technique stirred up the joys and disappointments and emphasised the other core message – that you can never predict a life trajectory.
The three actors I found that contributed something different yet central to the film were Daniele (Morgan Sebastian Wahr), who gives the film its toughness and realism, Sofia (Zoe Massenti) who gives it quiet emotional observation, and then of course the protagonist Professoré, who gives it empathy and hope. Surprisingly, 2 out 3 of these actors have little experience.
Morgan Sebastian Wahr who plays Daniele, is one of the central students and effectively a co-protagonist. It is only his second film role. His character understood that being tough was a form of protection, yet there was still a sense that he cared about the people around him. That made Daniele feel much more realistic than a stereotypical “troubled teenager” and he embodied this character well.
Then there was Zoe Massenti as Sofia. Massenti is more an Italian social-media personality/influencer, and Classmates is only her third film. Massenti performs with very little need for dialogue to communicate what she is thinking as her facial expressions and mannerisms say a lot without words which is important because she doesn’t overplay the character.
The way the film balances tension with warmth and the way the future captions for the students broaden the story beyond the immediate events make it a mix of good and bad that allows you to enjoy the film without feeling overly tense, which I felt was a good approach and the aspect I liked most.
A nice uplifting film if you want to watch something with depth without feeling too heavy.
Reviewed by Rebecca Wu
Rating 4 out of 5
Distributor: PalaceFilms
