I am honored to present a fabulous cross-section of film-bloggerdom for you this week, the first of my Italian Film Culture Blogathon. From sci-fi guilty pleasures to elegant period dramas, from gritty Neorealist classics to modern masterpieces, this cinematic feast is worthy of a Roman emperor or a Don of the Corleone dynasty. Buon appetito!
Jennifer of Close Ups and Long Shots explores the importance of Italian Neorealism and reflects on Roberto Rossellini’s Rome, Open City (1945). “The film pulls no punches; it is unsparing in its realistic portrayal of what happens to people who really fight the true fight against the forces of evil.”
Christina of The Betamax Revolt revisits Luchino Visconti’s lavish Senso (1954), a breathtaking Technicolor tale of love and betrayal, and explains how this period drama set it the 19th century “ambitiously attempts to capture the spirit of Neorealism within the operatic melodrama of the upper classes.”
“For me, however, even the worst of Italian science fiction has an undeniable charm.” Keith of The Merry Frolics of Teleport City savors the campy badness of Antonio Margheriti’s low-budget sci-fi flick Snow Devils (1967). Stay tuned for yetis, styrofoam blizzards, and mod futuristic parkas—hey, it’s Italian, after all.
Teddy Casimir of Faster, Pussycat! Blog! Blog! delves into the hypnotic, complex experience of Marco Tullio Giordana’s The Best of Youth (2003), in which “[a]ll of life’s mysteries, contradictions, evasiveness, treasures whirl and linger across the scenes.”
Lastly, your humble host has prepared a post about Sergio Leone’s awe-inspiring 1961 peplum film, The Colossus of Rhodes.
If you enjoyed these posts (and, come on, you know you did), be sure to check back for the next course on June 13. And please consider blogging about some aspect of Italian film culture yourself! Click on the banner below to learn more.
Nitrate Diva 