Manuel Cossu's artzine reimagines Lilli Carati's tragic life

Marco Giusti reflects on a 1986 artzine by Manuel Cossu dedicated to Italian actress Lilli Carati (1956–2014). Cossu, then unknown to Giusti, sent him a Kriegbop-styled Albo Blitz titled "Lilli Carati è rinata una stella," inspired by Giusti's interview with Carati on the show Stracult. Giusti initially mistook it for fan art but later recognized Cossu's deep understanding of Carati's troubled life. The zine depicts Carati in various states: on a staircase, bored, shooting drugs, in prison, in rehab, and despairing. Giusti contrasts this with his own fan experience and his 2008 interview with Carati for Stracult, where he avoided discussing her drug addiction and hardcore films, focusing instead on her cinema work. Carati revealed she never felt like an actress, was exploited by producers, and was forbidden from working with Carmelo Bene. She expressed disinterest in the film world. Giusti praises Cossu for capturing Carati's essence—her being "elsewhere" while her body was on screen—without ever meeting her. The article also references other fans like Moano (of Moana Pozzi) and Jeff Koons's pursuit of Cicciolina.