As the Venice Film Festival gets under way on Wednesday organizers are hitching their stars to director Steven Spielberg - just the man, they hope, to inspire Hollywood moguls and prize-hunting artists alike during 11 days of glitz and film magic.
The opening night's gala screening is Spielberg's The Terminal, in which Eastern European traveler played by Tom Hanks has the lousy luck to get stuck in an airport - but the good fortune to find starlet Catherine Zeta-Jones on the premises.
Sure, the movie may have opened in the United States over two months ago, but it gave Venice a chance to parade the biggest crowd-pleaser in any festival's arsenal: American celebrities.
Others expected to toddle along the red carpet include Robert De Niro, Angelina Jolie, Will Smith, John Travolta and Al Pacino. Before his arrival, Spielberg eulogized the glorious lagoon city, saying it helps people rediscover their sense of wonder.
"The festival, the city and the islands around it are a place rich with charm where cinema finds a magical setting," he said in a column published in Corriere della Sera newspaper.
{{/usCountry}}"The festival, the city and the islands around it are a place rich with charm where cinema finds a magical setting," he said in a column published in Corriere della Sera newspaper.
{{/usCountry}}Magic there may be. But this year's festival is also about grim realities, particularly among the 21 films jostling for the prestigious Golden Lion awards.