Story Of My Death

Casanova gets to know his new manservant, who will bear witness to his final days of life. Leaving a French château with its typical 18th century atmosphere of licentiousness, he spends his final days in impoverished, dismal northern Europe. There, his world of frivolity and high society, as well as his Enlightenment rationalism, crumble when faced with a new, violent, esoteric and romantic force represented by Dracula and his eternal power.

Following his radical (re-)interpretations of Cervantes' Don Quixote (Honor de Cavalleria) and the Biblical tale of the Three Kings (Birdsong), celebrated Catalan filmmaker Albert Serra imagines an encounter between two other legendary figures of world literature — Casanova and Count Dracula — in this deliciously eccentric and exquisitely detailed riff on the historical costume drama.
Loosely based on the autobiography of Casanova, the film depicts the journeys of the famous libertine from the joyful, sensual and rationalistic 18th century Europe to his last days where violence, sex and dark romanticism reigned.

“Story of My Death,” Catalan director Albert Serra’s imagined meeting of two oft-filmed historical figures—Casanova and Dracula—won the Golden Leopard Saturday night at the 66th Locarno Film Festival, the first edition under the stewardship of festival director Carlo Chatrian.