Valentina Cervi
Encyclopedia
Valentina Cervi is an Italian
film
and television
actress.
Cervi was born in Rome
, Italy
. She is the daughter of director Tonino Cervi and granddaughter of the famous Italian actor Gino Cervi
. Cervi started her acting career at age ten in Carlo Cotti's 1986 film Portami la luna. She also played an English-language role in Jane Campion
's 1996 The Portrait of a Lady
.
One of her most acclaimed roles was the lead in the 1997 film Artemisia, directed by Agnès Merlet
. It was loosely based on the painter Artemisia Gentileschi
's life, but controversially portrayed the relationship between Agostino Tassi
(played by Miki Manojlović
) and Artemisia as a passionate affair rather than as rape.
In 2011, she appeared as Arianna in BBC TV's Italian detective mini-series Zen
. The London Times commenting on her role as follows: "Zen (Rufus Sewell
) need only walk into a Lavazza
tore for [a] B-movie
-rank Gina Lollo
to press her amples
into his chest. An interview with one courtesan
[Cervi] was conducted ... with her in bra
and fishnets, the interrogation interrupted by the command 'zip
' as he dressed and undressed her".
Cervi appeared as Bertha in Cary Fukunaga's 2011 film adaptation of Jane Eyre
. She was cast as the ancient vampire Salome in the HBO television drama True Blood
.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
actress.
Cervi was born in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. She is the daughter of director Tonino Cervi and granddaughter of the famous Italian actor Gino Cervi
Gino Cervi
Gino Cervi was an Italian actor of international fame.Cervi was born in Bologna. His father was the theatre critic Antonio Cervi.In 1928, he married Nini Gordini and they had a son, Tonino Cervi...
. Cervi started her acting career at age ten in Carlo Cotti's 1986 film Portami la luna. She also played an English-language role in Jane Campion
Jane Campion
Jane Campion is a filmmaker and screenwriter. She is one of the most internationally successful New Zealand directors, although most of her work has been made in or financed by other countries, principally Australia – where she now lives – and the United States...
's 1996 The Portrait of a Lady
The Portrait of a Lady (film)
The Portrait of a Lady is a 1996 film adaptation of Henry James's novel The Portrait of a Lady directed by Jane Campion.The film stars Nicole Kidman, Barbara Hershey, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker, Martin Donovan, Shelley Duvall, Richard E...
.
One of her most acclaimed roles was the lead in the 1997 film Artemisia, directed by Agnès Merlet
Agnès Merlet
Agnès Merlet is a French film director who is known for directing Son of the Shark, Artemisia and Dorothy Mills...
. It was loosely based on the painter Artemisia Gentileschi
Artemisia Gentileschi
Artemisia Gentileschi was an Italian Early Baroque painter, today considered one of the most accomplished painters in the generation influenced by Caravaggio...
's life, but controversially portrayed the relationship between Agostino Tassi
Agostino Tassi
Agostino Tassi was an Italian painter, mostly of landscapes and seascapes, who is now best known as the rapist of Artemisia Gentileschi....
(played by Miki Manojlović
Miki Manojlovic
Predrag "Miki" Manojlović is a Serbian actor, famous for his starring roles in some of the most important films of former Yugoslav cinema. Since the early 1990s, he successfully branched out into movies made outside the Balkans, meaning that he's currently active in productions all over Europe...
) and Artemisia as a passionate affair rather than as rape.
In 2011, she appeared as Arianna in BBC TV's Italian detective mini-series Zen
Zen (TV series)
Zen is a British television series produced by Left Bank Pictures for the BBC, co-produced with WGBH Boston for its Masterpiece anthology series, Mediaset and ZDF. It stars Rufus Sewell and Caterina Murino and is based on the Aurelio Zen detective novels by Michael Dibdin. The series was filmed on...
. The London Times commenting on her role as follows: "Zen (Rufus Sewell
Rufus Sewell
Rufus Frederik Sewell is an English actor. In film, he has appeared in The Woodlanders, Dangerous Beauty, Dark City, A Knight's Tale, The Illusionist, Tristan and Isolde, and Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence. On television, he starred in the 2010 mini-series The Pillars of the Earth...
) need only walk into a Lavazza
Lavazza
Luigi Lavazza S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of coffee products. Founded in Turin in 1895 by Luigi Lavazza, it was initially run from a small grocery store at Via San Tommaso 10. The business of Lavazza S.p.A. is currently administered by the third and fourth generation of the Lavazza family.-...
tore for [a] B-movie
B-movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
-rank Gina Lollo
Gina Lollobrigida
Gina Lollobrigida is an Italian actress, photojournalist and sculptress. She was one of the most popular European actresses of the 1950s and early 1960s. She was also an iconic sex symbol of the 1950s. Today, she remains an active supporter of Italian and Italian American causes, particularly the...
to press her amples
Breast
The breast is the upper ventral region of the torso of a primate, in left and right sides, which in a female contains the mammary gland that secretes milk used to feed infants.Both men and women develop breasts from the same embryological tissues...
into his chest. An interview with one courtesan
Courtesan
A courtesan was originally a female courtier, which means a person who attends the court of a monarch or other powerful person.In feudal society, the court was the centre of government as well as the residence of the monarch, and social and political life were often completely mixed together...
[Cervi] was conducted ... with her in bra
Brassiere
A brassiere is an undergarment that covers, supports, and elevates the breasts. Since the late 19th century, it has replaced the corset as the most widely accepted method for supporting breasts....
and fishnets, the interrogation interrupted by the command 'zip
Zipper
A zipper is a commonly used device for temporarily joining two edges of fabric...
' as he dressed and undressed her".
Cervi appeared as Bertha in Cary Fukunaga's 2011 film adaptation of Jane Eyre
Jane Eyre (2011 film)
Jane Eyre is a 2011 British romantic drama film directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga and starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender. The screenplay is written by Moira Buffini based on the 1847 novel of the same name by Charlotte Brontë...
. She was cast as the ancient vampire Salome in the HBO television drama True Blood
True Blood
True Blood is an American television series created and produced by Alan Ball. It is based on The Southern Vampire Mysteries series of novels by Charlaine Harris, detailing the co-existence of vampires and humans in Bon Temps, a fictional, small town in the state of Louisiana...
.