The Venice film festival operates an unusual institutional tradition called Ridateci i soldi, or “Give us our money back,” a public feedback wall where attendees write critiques and complaints about films and festival logistics. Established approximately 30 years ago, the wall serves as a counterbalance to the promotional nature of film festivals, where festival directors have incentive to celebrate all entries as critical successes. Festival director Alberto Barbera personally awards a prize to the most scathing written complaint each year.
This year’s wall featured diverse grievances ranging from operational concerns—including rising costs for badges, water taxis, and accommodations, as well as uncomfortable seating and lighting issues during screenings—to critical assessments of specific films. Several entries targeted high-profile entries in the competition lineup, including protests against the Russian biographical film DAU, appeals for director Danny Boyle to return to certain subject matter, and wordplay critiques of other films. Italian productions received particular attention, with multiple films drawing negative commentary from festival visitors.
According to John Bleasdale, an Italy-based British critic, Italian audiences engage more vocally with cinema than counterparts at other festivals, making booing and ironic responses normative expressions of taste rather than unusual occurrences. The wall was created in the late 1990s by Gianni Ippoliti, a former football referee and television presenter, who acts as sole arbiter of the annual prize. Ippoliti maintains that the wall counters the tendency of festival reviews to treat all competing films as masterpieces.
The winning critique this year, submitted by festival visitor Cristian Poletti, humorously reframed a film’s title based on its frequent bathing scenes, suggesting the script might have been intended as advertising copy. The prize, a wooden sculpture called the Coppa Codacons sponsored by an Italian consumer watchdog organization, represents recognition distinct from the festival’s primary Golden Lion award. Despite the critical nature of the wall, Poletti expressed continued enthusiasm for attending Venice and viewing multiple films annually, noting that even poorly received films offer value compared to not watching cinema at all.
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