Giovanni Veronesi is taking the closing-night spotlight at this year’s Venice Film Festival. His new historical drama Dio Ride will screen out of competition, giving the festival a final dose of Italian cinema before the credits roll. Set in 17th-century Italy and inspired in part by real events, the film follows Frate Leopoldo, a friar whose encounters with ordinary people become a larger story about freedom, truth, and the uneasy pull between citizens and power. Pierfrancesco Favino leads a cast that also includes Silvio Orlando, Alma Noce, Francesco Gheghi, Maurizio Lombardi, Paolo Rossi, and Carlo Cecchi. Venice Is Ending on an Italian High Note Festival director Alberto Barbera praised Veronesi’s ability to bring humor and accessibility to weighty subject matter, pointing to a tradition of Italian filmmaking he believes deserves more attention. The movie comes from Indiana Production and PiperFilm, with a screenplay developed by Veronesi and several collaborators. Venice begins September 2 with Danny Boyle ’s Ink , a Rupert Murdoch drama starring Jack O’Connell, Guy Pearce, and Claire Foy. The festival runs through September 12, making Dio Ride the final major title in a lineup that is clearly aiming to leave audiences with something to debate on the way out.