'The Life Ahead' cast: Meet Sophia Loren, Ibrahima Gueye and the stars in Netflix film on Romain Gary's novel
Madame Rosa and Momo's story is one of a kind: she's a Holocaust survivor trying to rehabilitate children of sex workers and Momo is a rebel of the lot, absolutely venomous towards whatever Rosa tries to do for her wards. Yet together they somehow thrive in a balance achieved after much struggle in Edoardo Ponti's film 'The Life Ahead'.
Based on the novel 'The Life Before Us' by Romain Gary, the film coming to Netflix on Friday, November 13, might look like your conventional tear-jerker but is actually so much more than that. The pain and yearnings of being unwanted and discarded in a society are essayed beyond perfection by a skilled cast. The story follows Rosa, who's "an aging Holocaust survivor who forges a bond with a young immigrant from Senegal who recently robbed her," reveals the official synopsis. Here's who stars:
Sophia Loren
The Academy Award-winning actress stars as the generous Rosa in her son, Ponti's adaptation of the story. You might remember her from the infamous black and white picture of Loren and Jayne Mansfield, where she can be seen giving a vivid side eye to the latter's ample cleavage spilling out of her white dress. Loren has been an icon since the 60s and 70s, and continues to be, having starred opposite the likes of Paul Newman, Marlon Brando, Gregory Peck, and Charlton Heston. Her American films included 'El Cid' (1961), 'The Fall of the Roman Empire' (1964), 'Arabesque' (1966), 'Man of La Mancha' (1972) and 'The Cassandra Crossing' (1976). Her most popular Italian films are 'Marriage Italian Style' (1964) and 'A Special Day' (1977). Loren also has a second Oscar nomination and five Golden Globe Awards to her name.
Ibrahima Gueye
The young actor plays little Momo on the film - a storehouse of anger and protest against life as he has seen and known it. Gueye is known for his work on 'Adouna: La vie, le monde' (2012) and 'Muñeca Negra' (2019).
Abril Zamora
The transgender writer and actress plays the role of one of the mothers of the wards that Rosa takes care of on the film. Zamora is most popular for 'Dangerous Moms' (2019), 'Vis a vis' (2015) and 'Indetectables' (2017).
'The Life Ahead' will be available for streaming from Friday, November 13, only on Netflix.