The Venice Film Festival has kicked off its 83rd edition with a calculated combination of glamour, authorship, entertainment, and critical spirit. The elegance and media appeal were provided by George Clooney, who received an honorary Golden Lion this Wednesday. Curiously, last year Clooney was already seen receiving an award for his career in Venice, but it was on the festival's screens, in the fiction of Jay Kelly, Noah Baumbach's film. In reality, the link between the Hollywood star and the Festival dates back a long way, since 1998, when Clooney was still part of the cast of Emergencies, the actor stepped onto the festival's red carpet to present A very dangerous mess next to Jennifer Lopez. “My love story with Venice is almost thirty years old, and my most precious memory was my wedding – in 2014, with Amal Alamuddin, at the luxurious Aman Grand Canal Hotel. If I don't say this, I could get in trouble at home,” Clooney commented to the accredited press, showing off a charming and mischievous smile.