CINEMA PARADISO

How Bologna became a guiding light of the film-restoration world.

- BY ANTHONY LANE

The Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna's restoration laboratory specializes in healing films that have been damaged by time.

One of the blessings of Bologna, in northern Italy, is that it knows how to ride a heat wave. The city, which is the capital of the Emilia-Romagna region, is rich in porticoes—elegant arcaded structures that line the streets and allow the panting pedestrian, at any point, to flee the sunlight’s blaze and seek shade. In all, according to UNESCO, Bologna boasts more than thirty-eight miles of porticoes, and they promote a pleasing illusion that you are simultaneously inside and outside. A tip for anyone designing a metropolis from scratch: start with a portico, and take it from there.