
The scene is the Pontine Marshes, a disease-ridden region. The year is 1902. Maria Goretti, a twelve-year-old girl, lives with her parents, poor farm hands, in the house of Serenelli, a heavy drinker who has offered them board and lodging. The farmer has a son, Alessandro, aged eighteen, who is sexually attracted to the pious girl. Maria resists his advances. One day the young man can’t help it anymore: he rapes Maria before murdering her. Before she dies, Maria forgives her assailant. After her death she is canonized as a saint.
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Tag Archives: italian
Dove vai in vacanza? / Where Are You Going on Holiday? (1978) Mauro Bolognini, Luciano Salce, Ugo Tognazzi, Stefania Sandrelli, Pietro Brambilla, Comedy

Three shorter comedies: In “Saro Tutta Per Te” (I Will Be All Yours), Tognazzi is Enrico, a dentist who has agreed to vacation with his ex-wife at her lover’s villa. In “Si Buana” (Yes, Buana), Villaggio is Wilson, a man in charge of a group of tourists in Kenya. In the final episode, “La Vacanze Intelligenti” (Intelligent Vacation), Alberto Sordi is Remo, a greengrocer who, along with his wife, gets sent on a vacation by their well-meaning children who want to “improve” their parents’ minds by sending them off to see Etruscan tombs, hear performances of atonal modern music, and appreciate the wonders of avant-garde modern art.
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In campagna è caduta una stella / In the Country Fell a Star (1939) Eduardo De Filippo, Rosina Lawrence, Peppino De Filippo, Comedy

An American starlet inflames two Italian peasants who forget about their respective fiance’s. One of them even thinks of marrying her and begins to plan for the engagement banquet. When the girl decides to live the countryside harmony reigns again.
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La ragazza di Trieste / The Girl from Trieste (1982) Pasquale Festa Campanile, Ben Gazzara, Ornella Muti, Mimsy Farmer, Drama, Thriller

An aging artist sees a beautiful young woman drowning near the beach and helps her. They become lovers. At first he is smitten by her youth, beauty and free spirit but soon he starts worrying that she might actually be insane.
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Un amore a Roma / Love in Rome (1960) Dino Risi, Mylène Demongeot, Elsa Martinelli, Peter Baldwin, Drama, Romance

Stormy love between young writer of a noble decayed family and a lazy amoral starlet. Between arguments and reconciliations, jealousies and acts of infidelity, the relation between Marcello and the femme fatale-ish heroine, Anna (played by luscious French starlet Mylene Demongeot), seems not to have future. Marcello says he wants to remain free but – deep inside – wants a traditional fiancée and wife while Anna, as an aspirant actress, is of a free and rebellious nature, not very tilted with sentimental attachments. He gradually understands that he could never have her and be her only man.
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L’ingorgo: Una storia impossibile / Traffic Jam (1979) Luigi Comencini, Alberto Sordi, Annie Girardot, Fernando Rey, Drama

A tremendous congestion hit the Roma highway ring. The biggest traffic jam ever seen endures for more than 36 hours. People blocked in their cars react at the beginning normally. But the more the time advance the more we are witness of personal dramas, hysteric reactions and more. All the episodes are linked like one only plot. Cars and their hosts are a microcosm of stories part of a major universe: the congestion.
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Il tuo dolce corpo da uccidere / Your sweet body for killing (1970) Alfonso Brescia, George Ardisson, Françoise Prévost, Eduardo Fajardo, Horror

Tells the story of a husband who wants to kill his unfaithful wife. He has many murderous fantasies in which he murders her. After the disposal of her beautiful dead body our hero looses incriminating suitcase. It’s time to get the crime evidence back.
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Dopo divorzieremo (1940) Nunzio Malasomma

Grace Peterson works in department stores “Tutto per Tutti”, along with many other young people. His employment contract entitling them to live in a boarding house built specifically for them by the company but on the other hand, forbid them not fall in love or marry under threat of dismissal. Still, Grace falls for Phil Golder, a violinist penniless. The director of the residence will notice and the best friend of the girl impersonate violinist girlfriend to try to save Grace dismissal.
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Un maledetto imbroglio / The Facts of Murder (1959) Pietro Germi, Claudia Cardinale, Franco Fabrizi, Crime, Drama

A masked bandit steals valuables from Commendatore Anzaloni’s apartment and flees, leaving Anzaloni unharmed. Inspector Ingravallo is called in. The robbery is suspicious; the thief found the jewellery too quickly. The neighbour, Liliana Banducci, employs a servant girl, Assuntina. Her fiancé, Diomede, tries to flee when he sees police tailing Assuntina. But Diomede has an alibi, a rich American woman… Liliana’s cousin, Dr. Valdarena, pays her a visit, only to find her body on the floor. But before calling police, Valdarena removes an envelope addressed to him from the sideboard… Liliana’s husband Remo was away from Rome at the time of the murder, but he is surprised to hear that Liliana had changed her will only the week before…
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La viaccia / The Lovemakers (1961) Mauro Bolognini, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Claudia Cardinale, Pietro Germi, Drama

The original Italian is La Viaccia (the name of the family farm which motivates the plot). The death of a wealthy patriarch in 1885 sets off an interfamily power struggle. Son Ferdinando buys out his other relatives in order to gain full control over the dead man’s property. But Ferdinando’s nephew Amerigo holds out. Amerigo’s stance is weakened when he heads for Florence and meets prostitute Bianca.
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