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'
Dogman (2018)
7.3/10
Director: Matteo Garrone
Marcello is a mild-mannered dog groomer who commits petty crimes for Simoncino, a former boxer who terrorizes the neighborhood. When Simoncino's abuse... Read more
Perfect Strangers (Perfetti sconosciuti) (2016)
7.8/10
Director: Paolo Genovese
Starring: Giuseppe Battiston, Kasia Smutniak, Alba Rohrwacher, Valerio Mastandrea, Marco G...
During a dinner party, seven friends decide to play a dangerous game. The attendees place their cellphones on the table and agree to make all texts an... Read more
Italian Film Festival 2006 (2005)
Director: Ermanno Olmi, Gianni Amelio, Pupi Avati, Ferzan Ozpetek, Marco Tullio Giordana, Giovanni Veronesi, Angelo Longoni, Roberto Faenza, Franco Maresco, Daniele Cipri, Alessandro D'Alatri, Giuseppe Piccioni, Ambrogio Lo Giudice
Starring: Carlo Verdone, Bud Spencer, Charlotte Rampling, Kim Rossi Stuart, Alessio Boni,...
This extraordinary set contains eleven highlights of the 2006 Italian Film Festival, plus a film from 2004. Films included are: 'The Manual of Love';... Read more
The Gospel According To St. Matthew (1964)
7.9/10
Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini
Starring: Enrique Irazoqui, Susanna Pasolini, Mario Socrate
A totally original Italian version of the story of Christ, using only the words and scenes described by St Matthew. Director Pasolini, an avowed marxi... Read more
Dear Diary ( Caro Diario ) (1994)
6.5/10
Director: Nanni Moretti
Starring: Nanni Moretti, Renato Carpentieri, Jennifer Beals
Nanni Moretti's hilarious and intimate film diary, which follows his personal experiences over 18 months, was received rapturously at Cannes where it... Read more
Respiro (2002)
7/10
Director: Emanuele Crialese
Starring: Valeria Golino, Vincenzo Amato, Francesco Casisa, Veronica D'Agostino
Welcome to Lampedusa, a Mediterranean island paradise as mysterious as it is beautiful, a tropical heaven where ocean waves pound deep mysterious cave... Read more
The Best Offer ( Blu-ray ) (2013)
7.8/10
Director: Giuseppe Tornatore
Starring: Dermot Crowley, Donald Sutherland, Geoffrey Rush, Philip Jackson, Jim Sturgess,...
Acclaimed director Giuseppe Tornatore (Cinema Paradiso) reunites with renowned composer Ennio Morricone for this dramatic mystery set in the high-stak... Read more
One Hundred Steps (2000)
7.7/10
Director: Marco Tullio Giordana
Starring: Luigi Lo Cascio, Luigi Maria Burruano, Lucia Sardo, Paolo Briguglia, Tony Speran...
Aka "I Cento Passi". An explosive story of betrayal, murder and intrigue, revolving around one Mafia family. The Impastatos live in Cinisi, a small Si... Read more
Italian Film Festival 2008 (2007)
Director: Roberto Ando, Claudio Antonini, Ermanno Olmi, Paolo Taviani, Pupi Avati, Vittorio Taviani, Ferzan Ozpetek, Roberta Torre, Giovanni Veronesi, Maurizio Sciarra, Roberto Cimpanelli, Roberto Dordit, Davide Marengo
Starring: Angela Molina, Arsinee Khanjian, Diego Abatantuono, Ennio Fantastichini, Frances...
Passionate trysts, endless summer days, glorious architecture, great artists, mouth-watering pasta, vino with friends... the Italy we all dream of esc... Read more
The Canterbury Tales (1972)
6.5/10
Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini
Starring: Laura Betti, Ninetto Davoli, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Hugh Griffith, Josephine Chapl...
The second part of Pasolini's 'Trilogy of Life' (beginning with 'The Decameron' and ending with 'Arabian Nights') is based on the 14th century stories... Read more