FIAT and the world of cinema: The ‘Italian’ cultural connect
Fiat’s enduring cultural heritage and relationship with the global cinema, especially with the symbolic representation of the rich Italian culture, lifestyle and aura, needs no introduction.
Fiat served as the ‘Official Car’ at the recently concluded Rome Film Fest 2024 in Italy. The brand’s latest cars that were on display and shuttle duty at the event – Topolino, Fiat Grande Panda, and Fiat 600 – conveyed a strong cultural connect with the cinematic heritage and culture of the globe.
Fiat’s participation and recognition at the film fest is a testimony to its enduring cultural relationship with the global silver screens, since their respective origination in the beginning of the 20th century. The company’s signature Italian design today is exemplified with its latest ‘Dolce Vita’ styling philosophy.
Needless to say, Fiat has always been an important and integral part of the Italian film industry and the country’s local car culture. Just like food, fashion, art and architecture in the illustrious history of Italian culture, cars are no different to modern 20th century Italians. In fact, the tiny-teeny Fiat 500 is so iconic to them, nothing less to the bruteness of a Ferrari or Lamborghini!
Also Read: Fiat 600e: ‘Dolce Vita’ in Italian flair | Design Commentary
Since the beginning of the 20th century, Fiat cars were chosen by global film makers as a quintessential representation of the Italian lifestyle and culture in their movies, documentaries and commercials. Later, many Fiat models emerged as part of the national heritage of many societies outside of Italy and Europe as well, largely through the power of cinema.
For instance, the popular 1953 feature film Roman Holiday directed by William Wyler featured several Fiats in multiple scenes, including a 500 in which Gregory Peck drops off Audrey Hepburn (representing Princess Ann) in the heart-breaking farewell scene. One can also note several variants of Fiat 1100 and 1400 in the movie, filling the streets of Rome, besides the remarkable Vespa scooter in which the duo roam around.
Exactly 70 years later, the vintage Fiat 500 once again served to represent the Italian flair in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (2023), in which the retro-little yellow car ruled over a spectacular car chase sequence set in the streets of Rome. In 1957 film Nights of Cabiria, director Federico Fellini is said to have specifically featured Fiat 1100 B and the 600 Transformable in what later became a cult-classic movie.
Moreover, Fiat 500 appeared as protagonist in Italian murder-mystery movie Profondo Rosso (1975) and later in American comedy Zoolander 2 (2016) starring Ben Stiller with its modern prodigy – the 500X. The car has also left its profound imprints in the animation films such as Lupin III (1978) and Cars (2006).
Yet another feature film worth mentioning is the Autostop (1991), in which a Fiat Tempra was “metaphorically” employed to narrate a story of a lonely man and his encounter with a mesmerizing women along his way.
Even in Indian cinema, the imprints of the Fiat cars are immense. Take for instance the 1972 Hindi romantic film Mere Jeevan Saathi, in which Rajesh Khanna drives around in his bright-yellow Fiat Spider 1200 convertible for a entire song, which signified the enthusiasm associated with the Fiat brand at that time.
Also Read: Fiat 124 Spider: Neoteric Classic Beauty | Design Commentary
The Indian version of the popular Fiat 1100 – the Premier Padmini – can be found sharing screens with epic actors and enchanting screenplays in tons of movies of all Indian languages. One such impressive films that I can never forget is the 2014 Tamil movie Pannaiyarum Padminiyum that emphatically brought out the love life of an old man and his tryst with his first car.
The 2019 Kannada comedy movie Premier Padmini is yet another example, in which the Italian archetype car performed a strong role by making peace within a man facing a mid-life crisis. Finally, the recent Tamil language TV series Sweet Kaaram Coffee (2023) starred a Fiat Uno in its storyline, which was actually an unexpected delight to watch to me personally.
