The film revolves around a Contessa, in 1866 Venice during the Third Italian War of Independence, who falls for an Austrian officer amidst a tumultuous period in Europe’s history as she is also connected to those working in the Italian resistance. It is a film that explores an affair that would have repercussions during an intense conflict where a Contessa and this Austrian officer both desire a world without war, politics, and social standings. Yet, they would endure a reality that proves to be fatal for both of them as the film’s screenplay by Luchino Visconti and Suso Cecchi d’Amico is largely told from the perspective of Contessa Livia Serpieri (Alida Villa) who is attending an opera in Venice with her husband in Count Serpieri (Heinz Moog), who has been supporting the Austrians, where a protest led by her cousin and revolutionary Marchese Roberto Ussoni (Massimo Girotti) has caused a ruckus. There, she would meet the young Austrian officer Lieutenant Franz Mahler (Farley Granger) who has a post in Venice where is challenged to a duel against Ussoni.
Ussoni would be exiled from Venice where Livia gets to know Lt. Mahler as they would also fall in love where they would keep their affair a secret until Lt. Mahler suddenly leaves with Livia suspecting that there are other lovers. Yet, the war would intensify with Ussoni returning from exile as Count Serpieri and Livia would provide funds for him while they would stay up north to be away from the conflict. The script also play into the chaos of Livia trying to hide her affair though people including her maid Laura (Rina Morelli) know about the affair and its dangers. Especially in the third act it relates to the consequences of their affair with Lt. Mahler and the effects of the war.
Visconti’s direction is grand in the way he presents the film such as the opening scene at the Le Fenice opera house where Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore is performed where Visconti’s usage of the wide and medium shots play into the scope of the Venetian building. Shot on locations in Rome and Venice including studios on those locations, Visconti creates these compositions that do have this tone as if he is creating a painting in some of the shots he made while the opening scene at Le Fenice is lively in the way the Italians react toward the Austrians. It is a lavish opening sequence that helps establish the conflict that is happening as well as the role that Livia is in as she a woman of stature and importance due to whom she is married. Visconti’s close-ups and medium shots help play into the intimacy of a room as well as the interaction between the characters. Even in scenes at Venice at night where Livia and Lt. Mahler are walking around the canals as it would be this moment that would make the two connect over the fallacies of war as well as their longing for each other. Visconti’s direction also play into this growing disconnect between those who are rich and what is happening among those in Italy who are not fond of the Austrians in this conflict that is brewing.
The film’s second half has some grand set pieces such as the Battle of Custoza where the Italians become overwhelmed by the Austrian forces despite claims that the Italians were winning. Yet, it is about what is happening outside of the battlefield, where Livia must watch from afar as she deals with her own actions due to her affair with Lt. Mahler whom she had just seen some days ago. Even as the events in the third act has Visconti putting a lot of detail for the scenes in Verona where the Austrians are preparing to leave but also get drunk and such as it is not a place for Livia to be in. Especially as she is forced to see what her own actions in trying to help her cousin would do as well as what Lt. Mahler had done. Its ending is not just about death but also anguish in a woman who had given up everything for love only to create more chaos during a tumultuous conflict. Overall, Visconti crafts an enchanting and riveting film about an Italian Contessa’s tumultuous affair with an Austrian officer in mid-19th Century Italy.
Cinematographers G.R. Aldo, Robert Krasker, and Giuseppe Rotunno do incredible work with the film’s Technicolor photography with the richness of the daytime exteriors at the villa in the North of Italy as well as the scenes set in Venice with much of the work done by Aldo and Krasker with Rotunno shooting the film’s ending. Editor Mario Serandrei does excellent work with the editing as it is straightforward in its cutting as well as using rhythmic cuts to play into some of the action including fast-cuts in some of the battle scenes Production designer Ottavio Scotti and set decorator Gino Brosio do amazing work with the look of the homes that Livia lives in including her villa near Custoza and the apartment in Venice where Lt. Mahler stayed at. Costume designers Marcel Escoffier and Piero Tosi do phenomenal work with the costumes in the design of the gowns that Livia wears that plays into the feel of the times as well as the Austrian uniforms that Lt. Mahler wears.
The sound work of Aldo Calpini and Vittorio Trentino do superb work with the way cannons and gunfire sound up close and from afar in the battle scenes as well as the sparse sounds of scenes set in Venice. The film’s music by Anton Bruckner, with adaptation by Nino Rota, is brilliant for its bombastic music score with its orchestral flourishes as well as the usage of Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore for the film’s opening opera scene.
The film’s wonderful ensemble cast feature some notable small roles from Ernst Nadherny as an Austrian general in Verona, Christian Marquand as a Bohemian officer, Sergio Fantoni as a farmer who lives near Count Serpieri’s villa, and Marcella Mariani in a fantastic small role as a prostitute named Clara that Livia meets late in the film. Rina Morelli is excellent as Livia’s maid Laura who aids her in various affairs although she disapproves of Livia’s affair with Lt. Mahler despite her reluctance to hide the affair. Heinz Moog is excellent as Count Serpieri as Livia’s husband who is supportive of the Austrians to maintain his social status until the war goes into chaos where he reluctantly supports Ussoni’s group as Bruno Persa dubs him. Massimo Girotti is brilliant as Livia’s cousin Marchese Roberto Ussoni as an Italian Nationalist figure who is trying to stage a revolution against the Austrians where he would be exiled for a period as he hopes for Livia’s help financially so he can overthrow the Austrians.
Farley Granger is brilliant as Lieutenant Franz Mahler as this Austrian military officer who is filled with charm but also a sense of duty where he falls for Livia hoping for a life outside of war. While Granger is dubbed by Enrico Maria Salerno, Granger still maintains this sense of beauty and weariness of a man tired of his duties only to then succumb to his own faults that would unravel everything around him. Finally, there’s Alida Valli in a tremendous performance as Contessa Livia Serpieri as a woman who is fascinated by this Austrian officer whom she would fall for as she hopes to escape a loveless marriage while also wanting to support her cousin. Valli maintains this sense of regality as a woman that wants love but also must contend with the fact that she plays a small role in this growing conflict that is happening in Italy where she becomes desperate and lost as it is one of Valli’s finest performances of her career.
Senso is a spectacular film by Luchino Visconti that features a great leading performance from Alida Valli. Along with its supporting cast, grand visuals, a sumptuous music soundtrack, and its study of love and lust during one of Europe’s most tumultuous conflicts. It is a film that explores a love affair between two different people that would create chaos during a time of war as well as revelations of what this affair would cost. In the end, Senso is a sensational film by Luchino Visconti.
Luchino Visconti Films: (Obsessione) – (Giorni di gloria) – (La Terra Firma) – (Appunti su un fatto di cronaca) – (We, the Women) – (Bellisima) – White Nights (1957 film) - Rocco and His Brothers - (Boccaccio ’70-Il lavoro) – The Leopard - Sandra – (The Stranger (1967 film)) – The Witches-The Witch Burned Alive - The Damned - Death in Venice - (Alla ricerca di Tadzio) – (Ludwig) – (Conversation Piece) – The Innocent
© thevoid99 2024
Set in late 19th Century Italy, the film revolves around a philandering aristocrat who openly spends time with his mistress towards his wife whom he neglects until he learns that she had slept with someone as he devotes his full attention towards her. It is a film that explores a man who is married yet treats his wife terribly as he often engages in affairs as he tries to win over his mistress away from a rival. Yet, the news that his wife did have an affair only upsets him as he would try to devote his fullest attention to her until he learns more about the affair and its outcome. The film’s screenplay has a straightforward narrative as it showcases the life that Tullio Hermil (Giancarlo Giannini) has where he lives a rich life as he is married to a beautiful woman in Giuliana (Laura Antonelli) but he is also in love with his mistress in another aristocrat in Teresa Raffo (Jennifer O’Neill) whom he sees at an intimate concert. Giuliana suspects that something is going on when Tullio leaves the concert to talk with Teresa where he later confesses his relationship with Teresa but wants the marriage to continue as a way to maintain his social status.
When Tullio is out of town to pursue Teresa away from another aristocrat in Count Stefano Egano (Massimo Girotti), Tullio’s younger brother Federico (Didier Haudepin) is asked to watch over Giuliana as he invites some friends including an author in Filippo d’Arborio (Marc Porel) for dinner when Giuliana falls ill only to enjoy Filippo’s company. Tullio’s pursuit for Teresa would have issues as she is just as cruel as he is in the way he treats Giuliana until he wonders where Giuliana goes to when he’s not home as he also learns she goes to see his mother whom he would later visit with Giuliana. Giuliana’s affair would force Tullio to focus on her as he would be enamored with her until he brings her news that changes everything. The news would be exciting for Tullio’s family yet Federico becomes suspicious into Tullio’s behavior as Tullio becomes confused in his love for his wife but also wanting to be with his mistress.
Luchino Visconti’s direction definitely plays into a world that is set entirely in aristocratic society as it is shot at the Villa Mirafiori in Rome and two villas at the town of Luca with the Villa Butori being a main setting. Much of Visconti’s direction has this element of intrigue in the way he follows Tullio in this world of the privileged as well as being a man who feels like he could do whatever he wants and he can get anything he wants. Much of Visconti’s direction utilizes a lot of wide and medium shots to get a scope of the rooms that the characters walk into as well as this world where it is disconnected from the world of the working class and the poor as they’re never shown. Even as there are these rare moments of the rich walking into the streets such as a Christmas mass scene in the third act where everyone but Tullio attends. There is also an intimacy into Visconti’s direction in the medium shots and close-ups in the way he films Tullio’s reaction or the way he gazes into Giuliana’s face as she laments over her actions as well as Tullio’s response.
Visconti also plays into this air of masculinity that Tullio takes pride of as the revelations over who Giuliana had an affair with as he gets a look into the man as there is this air of humiliation and him being a cuckold. The film’s second act which takes place at the home of Tullio’s mother where Federico makes a visit showcases this sense of immorality that Federico notices in his brother’s behavior as he becomes concerned for Giuliana as the two would have a fencing duel that gets a little aggressive at one point. The third act relates to the film’s title where Giuliana starts to realize the emotional and mental toll her affair had yet more revelations occur following Tullio’s actions as Visconti reveals the many faults of Tullio’s masculinity and his inability to accept defeat. Even as the film’s final scene relates to result of his actions as well as the revelation of not having it all as it also relates to Teresa. Overall, Visconti crafts a chilling and intoxicating film about a philandering aristocrat trying to win back his wife after learning about her affair.
Cinematographer Pasqualino De Santis does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its approach to natural lighting as well as its usage of light for many of the nighttime interior/exterior scenes. Editor Ruggero Mastroianni does excellent work with editing as it is largely straightforward in terms of its dramatic reactions as well as in some of the suspenseful moments in the film. Production designer Mario Garbuglia and set decorator Carlo Gervasi do amazing work with the look of the homes that the characters live in as well as a villa that Tullio decides to make as his home as plays into his lavish personality. Costume designer Piero Tosi does fantastic work with the costumes from the design of the dresses and gowns the women wear as well as some of the looser clothing that Giuliana wears when she’s resting as well as some of the military uniforms that Federico wears.
The sound work of Mario Dallimonti is superb for its natural approach to sound in the way epees sound during duels as well as scenes from one room to another in some of the villas. The film’s music by Franco Mannino is incredible for its orchestral score filled with piano and string arrangements that play into the drama as well as some of the suspense that looms throughout the film while its soundtrack largely features some classical and operatic pieces from Frederic Chopin, Franz Listz, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Christoph Willibald Gluck.
The film’s remarkable cast feature some notable small roles from Enzo Musumeci Greco as the fencing master, Vittorio Zarfati as Dr. Milani, Alessandra Vazzoler as a nanny, Claude Mann as a prince who is another romantic rival of Tullio for Teresa’s affections, Roberta Paladina as Federico’s date during a dinner where Filippo met Giuliana, Marie Dubois as a princess that is part of Teresa’s social circle, and Massimo Girotti as another of Tullio’s rival for Teresa in Count Stefano Egano whom Tullio despises. Marc Porel is superb as the writer Filippo d’Arborio whom Giuliana meets at Federico’s dinner as he is someone that the opposite of Tullio in his personality as well as being someone that doesn’t say much as he has no clue who Tullio is. Didier Haudepin is fantastic as Tullio’s younger brother Federico as an officer who observes a lot into what is happening to the point where he becomes disenchanted with life at the family home as well as being around Tullio whom he feels has become a monster.
In her final film performance, Rina Morelli is excellent as Tullio and Federico’s mother Marchesa Marianna Hermill as a woman who adores Giuliana while is hoping to have an heir to continue the family name as she becomes baffled by her eldest son’s cold demeanor. Jennifer O’Neill is amazing as Teresa Raffo as this aristocratic beauty who is also Tullio’s mistress as a woman who is fond of Tullio but often makes him go after her as she also has other suitors that she is eager to be with as O’Neill brings a lot of great facial expressions as her voice is dubbed Valeria Moriconi. Giancarlo Giannini is brilliant as Tullio Hermill as this aristocratic man who gets away with lot and feels like he’s untouchable while neglecting and humiliating his wife. Even as he would later become humiliated himself where Giannini brings that sense of restrained fury as a man eager to get revenge while also wanting to have control of his wife in seducing her every way possible.
Finally, there’s Laura Antonelli in a tremendous performance as Tullio’s wife Giuliana as a woman who is mistreated horribly by her philandering husband as she copes with her loneliness and being neglected until she meets a friend of her brother-in-law. Antonelli has this sense of restraint and melancholia as a woman who doesn’t feel appreciated until her brief affair where Tullio devotes a lot of attention to her as she becomes troubled by his behavior as well as some news that would shake their relationship as it is a revelatory performance from Antonelli who has this radiance that is often overlooked considering that a lot of her work has been in Italian softcore erotic films as this is her career-defining performance.
L’Innocente is a phenomenal film from Luchino Visconti that features great performances from Giancarlo Giannini, Laura Antonelli, and Jennifer O’Neill. Along with its ensemble supporting cast, ravishing visuals, a haunting music score, and its story of infidelity and the fallacies of male chauvinism. It is a film that is this evocative period drama that explores a man being forced to deal with his life but also maintain control of who he is as it serves as this fitting finale for Visconti. In the end, L’Innocente is a sensational film from Luchino Visconti.
Luchino Visconti Films: (Obsessione) – (Giorni di gloria) – (La Terra Firma) – (Appunti su un fatto di cronaca) – (We, the Women) – (Bellisima) - Senso – White Nights (1957 film) - Rocco and His Brothers - (Boccaccio ’70-Il lavoro) – The Leopard - Sandra – (The Stranger (1967 film)) – The Witches (1967 film)-The Witch Burned Alive - The Damned - Death in Venice - (Alla ricerca di Tadzio) – (Ludwig) – (Conversation Piece)
© thevoid99 2024
Written and directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, Teorema is the story of a wealthy family whose upper-class lifestyle is turned upside down when they invite a stranger into their home. The film is a study of a family from Milan who endure some serious revelations upon inviting this man into their home as they cope with their identities and their environment. Starring Terence Stamp, Laura Betti, Silvana Mangano, Massimo Girotti, Anne Wiazemsky, and Ninetto Davoli. Teorema is a majestic and surreal film from Pier Paolo Pasolini.
Set in the bourgeoisie world of Milan, the film revolves around a wealthy family who invite a mysterious visitor to their home for a brief stay as his presence would turn their world upside down. It is a film with a simple premise as it play into a family who spent much of their lives living in the bourgeoisie society as they’re not fully aware of what the world around them. Pier Paolo Pasolini’s script doesn’t feature a conventional plot, despite featuring a straightforward narrative, nor does it feature a lot of dialogue in favor of characters reacting to this mysterious and unnamed visitor (Terence Stamp). The visitor’s presence would create a reaction to this family including its maid Emilia (Laura Betti) who is suffering from depression as her encounter with the visitor has her facing many things. The visitor’s time at this home is only for the film’s first half but his impact would play a major key role in the film’s second half as it relates to the family.
Pasolini’s direction is largely straightforward in its compositions yet it does contain an element of surrealism as it relates to the world of this bourgeoisie family as it is also shot on location in and around Milan. There are some wide and medium shots of the locations as well as the home of this family yet Pasolini also uses it to convey the sense of isolation this family lives in as it is clear that their lack of interaction outside of their environment has made them too comfortable. Here in this strange visitor, the bubble that this family is living in proves to full of faults and fallacies as the visitor is someone who would inspire each member of the family in some way. The usage of the close-ups and medium shots add an intimacy to what Pasolini is conveying in how each of the family members and the maid deal with this visitor.
While much of the film’s first half is straightforward, there are elements that are surreal that would include recurring images of gray and dusty landscapes. The second half of the film is where Pasolini brings in a lot of these surreal moments as they’re more about these revelations of this family and their own individual needs and wants. Pasolini also play into the idea of spirituality as well as some of the harsh realism of the modern world since the family patriarch Paolo (Massimo Girotti) runs a factory as he is already troubled by some of the growing tension between factory workers and those in charge. By the film’s third act where Paolo and his film start to unravel in different ways, it all play into these ideas of existentialism as well as identity. Notably as it features Paolo and the recurring images of the gray landscape that he’s been thinking about as well as the lack of depth in the bubble he had lived in for many years with his family. Overall, Pasolini crafts an entrancing and eerie film about a mysterious visitor’s time at the home of a Milanese bourgeoisie family and its aftermath.
Cinematographer Giuseppe Ruzzolini does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography to capture the lush colors of the locations within the family home that is a direct contrast to the more realistic look of the locations in and outside of Milan with the opening shots of the film presented in a sepia-like filter. Editor Nino Baragli does amazing work with the editing with its stylish usage of jump-cuts for the recurring images of gray landscape that appear every now and then as well as rhythmic cuts to play into the drama. Art director Luciano Puccini does excellent work with the look of the family home with its stylish rooms that play into the personality of the characters.
Costume designers Roberto Capucci and Marcella De Marchis do fantastic work with the costumes with Capucci creating lavish and stylish clothes for the family matriarch to wear with De Marchis creating clothes for the other characters that are posh but casual. The sound work of Bernardino Fronzetti is superb for its atmosphere of the locations at the home where it’s tranquil in comparison to the noisier world of industrial-driven Milan. The film’s music by Ennio Morricone is tremendous for its mixture of lush orchestral music mixed in with elements of jazz that is driven by horns as well as a bit of rock n roll while its soundtrack features a classical piece from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
The film’s incredible cast feature some notable small roles from Ninetto Davoli as the postman Angelino, Adele Cambria as a maid also named Emilia, Alfonso Gatto as a doctor, Susanna Pasolini as an old peasant, and Laura Betti as the family maid in Emilia whose encounter with the visitor has her dealing with ideas of spirituality. Andres Jose Cruz Soublette is superb as the young man Pietro who rooms with the visitor as he would later cope with his identity as well as the world he lives in. Anne Wiazemsky is fantastic as the family daughter Odetta who is a young woman of innocence as someone who cares for her father as her meeting with the visitor has her thinking about men in a sexual way as it becomes an emotional revelation for her.
Massimo Girotti is excellent as the family patriarch Paolo as a man who owns and runs a factory who becomes ill as he also copes with the world of industrialization and social turmoil as well as dreams of a land where his encounters with the visitor forces him to see things differently. Silvana Mangano is amazing as Lucia as the family matriarch whose encounter with the visitor awakens her own sexual desires as she deals with the trappings of her own surroundings where she would go into an existential journey of her own. Finally, there’s Terence Stamp in a sensational performance as the visitor as this mysterious young man who is a guest at this home where he doesn’t do much other than just read books, play with a dog, and other casual activities as he is also someone that doesn’t reveal exactly who he is as Stamp just plays it straight in an understated yet ravishing performance.
Teorema is a spectacular film from Pier Paolo Pasolini. Featuring a great cast, lush visuals, a riveting music score by Ennio Morricone, and a study of identity and lifestyle. The film is a provocative and rapturous film that explores the life of a bourgeoisie family as their world goes upside down following a strange visit from a mysterious young man as it play into the many faults of the upper-class and their disconnection with the rest of the world. In the end, Teorema is a phenomenal film from Pier Paolo Pasolini.
Pier Paolo Pasolini Films: (Accattone) – (La Rabbia) - Mamma Roma - (Location Hunting in Palestine) – (The Gospel According to Matthew) – (Love Meetings) – (The Hawks and the Sparrows) – The Witches (1967 film)- The Earth Seen from the Moon - (Oedipus Rex) – (Porcile) – (Medea (1969 film)) – (Appunti per un film sull’India) – (Notes Towards an African Orestes) – The Decameron - The Canterbury Tales - Arabian Nights - Salo, or the 120 Days of Sodom
© thevoid99 2020
