Making a grand entrance at a press conference at the Old University building by exclaiming “Bongu, hbieb!” (Good morning, friends!) in broken Maltese, Roberto Benigni yesterday confirmed that even beyond the TV screen, his persona remains explosive, jolly, and eccentric.
“It does not happen every day that one receives a degree from Malta,” he began, referring to the conferment of his honoris causa doctorate. “When I received the telephone call announcing that the university would bestow me this honour I was overjoyed, making a scene and jumping on the table.
“It’s not like I came to Malta to seek asylum after the Italian elections… In Malta you have a lot of knights. In Italy we only have one, and he’s not like the ones you have in Malta. I will be asking Gonzi for help to send your knights up to Italy and confront the Guelfi,” he said in allusion to the pro-Catholic faction in a medieval political battle between the empire and the Holy See.
In Dante Alighieri’s epic The Divine Comedy, of which Benigni will be reciting excerpts on the university campus this evening, this political conflict is very much brought out with a slant in favour of the opposing, anti-clerical camp: the Ghibellini.
Asked a hypothetical question on whether Dante would have placed him in Hell, Purgatory or Heaven, Benigni said: “I was not expecting such a question. I was hoping for something more on the lines of where Dante would have put Berlusconi.”
Describing Malta as “a newborn, old woman”, Benigni explained how he fell in love with the country, comparing the language to a pot containing a mix of all languages on the boil. “Your language makes you want to eat it,” he said.
Benigni was accompanied by acclaimed Dante scholar Robert Hollander, who recently published a full English translation of the Divine Comedy, with a foreword penned by Benigni himself. At one point, Hollander turned to Benigni to remind him of an idea suggested by his wife Jean about a comedy in which Benigni would play the part of Dante Alighieri. After reacting with surprise, Benigni later answered a question on what his next international film will be about by saying: “You read my mind. I was about to explain my new idea. I thought of a comedy where I would play the part of Dante, I’ll speak to Jean about it to see what she thinks.”
At the graduation ceremony later, Benigni listened to a four-page eulogy on Benigni delivered by University professor Gloria Lauri Lucente, the person behind the entire event. As she concluded, Benigni jokingly said that he had no idea the speech was about him.
After receiving the diploma, Benigni warmly hugged the University officials and went on to deliver his speech. “Grazzi Malta,” he started, to hearty applause. Followed by any random phrase in Maltese that popped to mind, including “Il-Allu”, he said: “I was not expecting such warmth. I thought I would be awarded the degree and sent home. My thanks go to the sensuality of this island: Birkarkara, Siggiewi, Gozo, Comino and Filfla and the whole Maltese world.”
“I have sought refuge on this island after the elections in Italy,” he continued before proceeding to address President Edward Fenech Adami, who was seated at a distance of some 15 metres by shouting: “Ghinuni! Ghinuni!” (Help me, help me!) He then darted off to the President’s seat, knelt down before him and asked him for asylum, since Berlusconi was elected to power.
Moved by this stunt, Fenech Adami helped him rise, hugged him warmly and kissed him on the cheeks. “Inhobbkom! Inhobbkom hafna,” (I love you, I love you a lot) Benigni said, this time pronouncing his Maltese flawlessly.