Italian Film in the Light of Neorealism

456 Pages·2020·41.567 MB·English

by  Millicent Marcus

Italian Film in the Light of Neorealism

Italian Film
in the Light of
Neorealism
MILLICENT MARCUS
1 9 86
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS
Copyright © 1986 by Princeton University Press
Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street,
Princeton, New Jersey 08540
In the United Kingdom: Princeton University Press,
Chichester, West Sussex
ALL R I G H TS R E S E R V ED
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Marcus, Millicent Joy.
Italian film in the light of neorealism.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Moving-pictures—Italy. 2. Realism in moving-
pictures. I. Title.
PN1993.5.188M28 1986 79i.43'o9/o9i2 86-91473
ISBN 0-691-05489-4 (alk. paper)
ISBN 0-691-10208-2 (pbk.)
Publication of this book has been aided by a grant from the
Paul Mellon Fund of Princeton University Press
This book has been composed in Linotron Sabon
Princeton University Press books are printed on acid-free
paper, and meet the guidelines for permanence and durability
of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book
Longevity of the Council on Library Resources
Printed in the United States of America
9 8
To Jacob and Lucy

Contents
ix List of Illustrations
xi Acknowledgments
xiii Preface
3 Introduction
31 PART i: Neorealism Proper
33 J. Rossellini's Open City: The Founding
54 2. De Sica's Bicycle Thief: Casting Shadows on the
Visionary City
76 3. De Santis's Bitter Rice: A Neorealist Hybrid
96 4. De Sica's Umberto D: Dark Victory for
Neorealism
119 PART 11: Transitions
121 j. Comencini's Bread, Love, and Fantasy:
Consumable Realism
144 6. Fellini's La strada: Transcending Neorealism
164 7. Visconti's Senso: The Risorgimento According
to Gramsci
188 8. Antonioni's Red Desert: Abstraction as the
Guiding Idea
209 PART i n: Return to Social Commentary
211 9. Olmi's // posto: Discrediting the Economic
Miracle
CONTENTS Vll
228 10. Germi's Seduced and Abandoned: Inside the
Honor Code
245 11. Pasolini's Teorema: The Halfway Revolution
263 ix. Petri's Investigation of a Citizen above Suspi-
cion: Power as Pathology
283 PART iv: Fascism and War Reconsidered
285 13. Bertolucci's The Conformist: A Morals Charge
313 14. Wertmuller's Love and Anarchy: The High
Price of Commitment
339 15. Rosi's Christ Stopped at Eboli: A Tale of
Two Italies
360 16. The Taviani Brothers' Night of the Shooting
Stars: Ambivalent Tribute to Neorealism
391 17. Scola's We All Loved Each Other So Much:
An Epilogue
423 Bibliography of Works Consulted
437 Index
Illustrations
1. Open City by Roberto Rossellini (Courtesy of Museum
of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 41
2. Bicycle Thief by Vittorio De Sica (Courtesy of Museum
of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 63
3. Bitter Rice by Giuseppe De Santis (Courtesy of Mu-
seum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 91
4. Umberto D by Vittorio De Sica (Courtesy of Museum
of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 111
5. Bread, Love, and Fantasy by Luigi Comencini (Cour-
tesy of Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive),
135
6. La strada by Federico Fellini (Courtesy of Museum of
Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 155
7. Senso by Luchino Visconti (Courtesy of Museum of
Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 165
8. Red Desert by Michelangelo Antonioni (Courtesy of
Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 195
9. // posto by Ermanno Olmi (Courtesy of Museum of
Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 223
10. Seduced and Abandoned by Pietro Germi (Courtesy of
Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 237
11. Teorema by Pier Paolo Pasolini (Courtesy of Museum
of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 255
12. Investigation of a Citizen above Suspicion by Elio Petri
(Courtesy of Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Ar-
chive), 277
ILLUSTRATIONS X
13. The Conformist by Bernardo Bertolucci (Courtesy of
Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 305
14. Love and Anarchy by Lina Wertmuller (Courtesy of
Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 325
15. Christ Stopped at Eboli by Francesco Rosi (Courtesy of
Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills Archive), 357
16. Night of the Shooting Stars by Paolo and Vittorio Tav-
iani (Courtesy of Museum of Modern Art/Film Stills
Archive), 383
17. We All Loved Each Other So Much by Ettore Scola
(Courtesy of Stephen Bearden), 407