Italian Cinema
The history of Italian cinema began with a few seconds footage of Pope Leo XIII blessing the camera. Historical dramas were most popular in these early years before sound. During and after WWI, funds were short and nothing much of interest was made until the 1920s. With the rise of fascism the film industry was encouraged and in 1937 Cinecitta was built on the outskirts of Rome. Literally a 'cinema city', it contained everything a film maker could need or want, including theatres, and even a cinematography school. The slogan on posters at the time read "Cinema is The Most Powerful Weapon". Newsreels and propagandistic documentaries were filmed here but by 1939, feature film productions were underway. Visconti ('Ossessione'), Rossellini (Rome, Open City') and De Sica ('Bicycle Thief') all began their careers here. Post-war, two distinct trends emerged in Italian cinema: on the one hand, the neo-realist films of Rossellini and De Sica, made chiefly on location in the streets of Rome and surrounding towns; and on the other, the American megaproductions, filmed almost entirely on sets constructed in the Cinecitta studios. In 1948, 'Quo Vadis?', 'Roman Holiday (1952), 'Three Coins in a Fountain' (1954), 'Farewell to Arms' (1957), 'Ben Hur' (1958) and 'Cleopatra' (1961), to cite only the most famous. Federico Fellini shot most of his films, at least in part at Cinecitta and to this day the studios are used for television and film productions.
Mention must also be made of Pasolini, Bertolucci, Zeffirelli, Antonioni, Sergio Leone - Italy has given cinema some of its greatest individuals and auteurs.
Pictured: The lost kisses from 'Cinema Paradiso'
La Commare Secca ( The Grim Reaper ) (1962)
6.9/10
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci
Starring: Carlotta Barilli, Lorenza Benedetti, Clorinda Celani, Vincenzo Ciccora
Bertolucci's debut feature was written by his friend Pier Paolo Pasolini and bears that filmmaker's mark of realism. When a prostitute is murdered in... Read more
Murders at Bar Lume (2013)
MURDERS AT BAR LUME is a charming new series by the creators of INSPECTOR MONTALBANO. Adapted from the novels by Marco Malvadi, the story takes place... Read more
Blood Feud (1973)
6/10
Director: Lina Wertmuller
Starring: Sophia Loren, Marcello Mastroianni, Turi Ferro
A torrid story of love and revenge. Sophia Loren is a Neopolitan whose husband is gunned down and is befriended by Marcello Mastroianni, her Lawyer. T... Read more
Bellissima (1951)
7.9/10
Director: Luchino Visconti
Starring: Anna Magnani, Walter Chiari, Gastone Renzelli
A working class mother blinded by pride hatches unrealistic plans for her daughter's show business career when a famous director comes to town and sta... Read more
The Way We Laughed (1998)
Director: Gianni Amelio
Starring: Francesco Guiffrida, Enrico Lo Verso, Claudio Contartese, Rosaria Danze, Fabrizi...
A.k.a. "Cosi Ridevano". The epic story of two brothers who emigrate to the northern Italian city of Turin, to escape the poverty of their Sicilian hom... Read more
A Matter of Heart (2009)
Director: Francesca Archibugi
Starring: Antonio Albanese, Kim Rossi Stuart
"Un Questione de Cuore" Angelo and Alberto strike up a close friendship in hospital after suffering a heart attack. They are both Romans, but they liv... Read more
We Have a Pope ( Habemus Papam ) (2012)
6.7/10
Director: Nanni Moretti
Starring: Margherita Buy, Michel Piccoli, Nanni Moretti, Jerzy Stuhr
At the Vatican, following the demise of the Pope, the conclave to elect his successor settles on Cardinal Melville. But the faithful gathered in St Pe... Read more
Francesco Giullare Di Dio (1950)
Director: Roberto Rossellini
Starring: Aldo Fabrizi, Arabella Lemaitre
A.k.a. "Francis, God's Jester". Roberto Rossellini and co-writer Federico Fellini lovingly render the very spirit of Franciscan teaching in this extr... Read more
The Golden Coach (1952)
7.3/10
Director: Jean Renoir
Starring: Anna Magnani, Odoardo Spadaro, Nada Fiorelli
Jean Renoir explores the complex relationship between theatre and life in this highly stylised account of the travels of a commedia dell'arte troupe i... Read more
The Leopard (Il Gattopardo) (Blu-Ray) (1963)
8.1/10
Director: Luchino Visconti
Starring: Alain Delon, Burt Lancaster, Claudia Cardinale
As Garibaldi's troops begin the unification of Italy in the 1860s, an aristocratic Sicilian family grudgingly adapts to the sweeping social changes un... Read more