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'
Kill, Baby, Kill (1966)
7.1/10
Director: Mario Bava
Starring: Giacomo Rossi-Stuart, Erika Blanc, Piero Lulli
From Italian horror master Mario Bava comes this ultra-stylish tale of a town haunted by the spectre of a homicidal adolescent girl. This fanciful noc... Read more
L'Avventura (1960)
8/10
Director: Michelangelo Antonioni
Starring: Monica Vitti, Gabriele Ferzetti
A scathing examination of Italy's aristocratic classes set within the framework of a mystery story, director Michelangelo Antonioni's groundbreaking f... Read more
L'eclisse (1962)
7.9/10
Director: Michelangelo Antonioni
Starring: Alain Delon, Monica Vitti, Louis Seigner
'Eclipse'. A fascinating drama of alienation about a translator (Monica Vitti) who breaks up with her boyfriend and commences an affair with stockbrok... Read more
L'Innocente ( The Innocent ) (1976)
7.5/10
Director: Luchino Visconti
Starring: Giancarlo Giannini, Laura Antonelli
Aka 'The Innocent'. An elegant, visually beautiful exploration of the constraints of marriage and its disintegration. Featuring a remarkable, sensuous... Read more
La Chimera (2023)
7.3/10
Director: Alice Rohrwacher
Starring: Josh O'Connor, Carol Duarte, Isabella Rossellini, Alba Rohrwacher
Tuscany, early 1980s. Arthur has just been released from a short stint in prison. During his earlier studies in the region, he fell in love with Benia... Read more
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
La Dolce Vita (1960)
8.1/10
Director: Federico Fellini
Starring: Marcello Mastroianni, Anouk Aimee, Anita Ekberg
'A landmark of cinematic social comment,' wrote one critic about Fellini's journey through a decadent Rome. Banned by the church in many countries, th... Read more
La Dolce Vita ( Blu-ray ) (1960)
8.1/10
Director: Federico Fellini
Starring: Alain Cuny, Anita Ekberg, Anouk Aimee, Marcello Mastroianni, Yvonne Furneaux
'A landmark of cinematic social comment,' wrote one critic about Fellini's journey through a decadent Rome. Banned by the church in many countries, th... Read more
La moglie più bella/The Most Beautiful Wife (Blu-ray) (1970)
Starring: Ornella Muti
Based on the story of Franca Viola and Filippo Melodia. In Sicily, as a Mafia boss leaves for prison, he advises Vito, a young man who's his potential... Read more
La Nostra Vita (2010)
6.7/10
Director: Daniele Luchetti
Starring: Elio Germano, Raoul Bova, Isabella Ragonese, Luca Zingaretti
Claudio works in the suburbs of Rome. He is in love with his wife who is pregnant with their third child. A dramatic event upsets his life. Claudio fi... Read more