Cinema - Italian films

Italian cinema: Comedy

Beat the Devil (1953)

John Huston

Billy Dannreuther and his wife Maria are on their way to make their fortune in Africa, but are held up in an Italian port whilst their steamboat undergoes some repair work. Here, they meet an eccentric English couple, Harry and Gwendolen Chelm, and a strange foursome led by a man named Peterson. It gradually becomes apparent that they all have one thing in common – to secure the rights to land that is reputed to be rich in uranium ore... [More...]

La Decima vittima (1965)

Elio Petri

In the not too distant future, human aggression is channelled away from war and into a government-licensed murder game known as The Big Hunt. Those who participate in this game must hunt down and kill five victims, chosen by computer, whilst being the target of five equally determined hunters. Fame, glory and some significant income tax concessions await the winner of each game, the one who manages to dispose of his ten opponents... [More...]

Il Giorno più corto (1962)

Sergio Corbucci

When two idiots enlist in the Italian army they become heroes after they unwittingly stumble across a German arms cache. [More...]

The Girl Who Knew Too Much (1963)

Mario Bava

Whilst on holiday in Rome, a young American, Nora Davis, visits her bedridden elderly aunt. When her aunt suddenly dies that night, Nora rushes out into the street to fetch her doctor, Marcello Bassi, but is attacked by a mugger. When she comes to, Nora is horrified to see a young woman collapse in front of her, with a knife in her back... [More...]

La Loi c’est la loi (1958)

Christian-Jaque

The small town of Assola lies across France’s border with Italy, a fact which is about to cause no end of distress for the dedicated customs inspector Ferdinand Pastorelli. Presently, Ferdinand is preoccupied with chasing Giuseppe La Paglia, a wily smuggler whom he has known since childhood and who is married to his ex-wife... [More...]

Maddalena, zero in condotta (1940)

Vittorio De Sica

Elisa Malgari is a newly recruited teacher in a business school for young women. Teased by her pupils, Elisa begins to dislike her job and finds solace in the letters she writes to a fictitious Alfredo Hartman. One of her letters finds its way into the hands of one of her pupils, Maddalena Lenci, who decides to post it, believing it to be a genuine love letter... [More...]

Mare matto (1963)

Renato Castellani

Newly arrived in the port of Genoa, a crew of sailors set about collecting their next shipment, a large cargo of wine, ahead of their departure for Sicily. Their mission is jeopardised when their captain is arrested and the weather suddenly takes a turn for the worse... [More...]

Miracolo a Milano (1951)

Vittorio De Sica

One day, an old woman finds a baby boy in her cabbage patch and decides to adopt him, christening him Toto. When the old woman later dies, Toto enters an orphanage, where he stays until he is 18. On leaving the orphanage, Toto sets about trying to find work, without success. He is befriended by a homeless beggar who invites him to stay with him in his shack on a piece of wasteland inhabited by other displaced people... [More...]

Quelle joie de vivre (1960)

René Clément

Rome, 1921. His military service over, the idealistic young man Ulisse enlists in the Italian Fascist Party. His first mission is to track down a print works that has been making anti-fascist pamphlets. By chance, Ulisse falls upon the offending workshop, but ends up being employed there as an apprentice, so that he can be close to the woman he has fallen in love with, Franca... [More...]

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