Italian History in the Movies
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- DirectorGérard CorbiauStarsStefano DionisiEnrico Lo VersoElsa ZylbersteinThe story of castrato opera singer Carlo Broschi, who enthralled 18th-century European audiences under his stage name Farinelli.
- DirectorPaolo TavianiVittorio TavianiStarsJulian SandsCharlotte GainsbourgMassimo BonettiYoung nobleman Baron Sergio Giuramondo, after discovering that his bride-to-be was the king's mistress, leaves Naples in disgust to become a monk. But his quest for perfect solitude is constantly interrupted by visitors hearing rumours that Sergio possesses miraculous powers, and by women who bet each other that they can successfully seduce him...
- DirectorAgnès MerletStarsValentina CerviMichel SerraultPredrag 'Miki' ManojlovicArtemisia Gentileschi (1593-1653) was one of the first well-known female painters. The movie tells the story of her youth, when she was guided and protected by her father, the painter Orazio Gentileschi. Her professional curiosity about the male anatomy, forbidden for her eyes, led her to the knowledge of sexual pleasure. But she was also well known because in 1612 she had to appear in a courtroom because her teacher, Agostino Tassi, was suspected of raping her. She tried to protect him, but was put in the thumb screws...
- DirectorNae CaranfilStarsFrançois CluzetIsabella FerrariMargherita BuyThis movie depicts the two years that young Stendhal spent in Italy. Stendhal, that time still known simply as Henri Beyle, is living the life of a wanderer, looking for a direction in his life, meeting famous Rossini and falling in love with young widow Giuseppina. A story of love, betrayal and an analysis of women and men's minds and souls.
- DirectorFrancesco RosiStarsMark FrechetteAlain CunyGian Maria VolontèOn the Italian/Austrian front during World War I, a disastrous Italian attack upon the Austrian positions leads to a mutiny among the Italian troops.
- DirectorPaolo TavianiVittorio TavianiStarsOmero AntonuttiMargarita LozanoClaudio BigagliIn 1944, the residents of a small Italian town under Axis control flee their homes to seek out the liberating Allied forces.
- DirectorGiuseppe TornatoreStarsMonica BellucciGiuseppe SulfaroLuciano FedericoAmidst the war climate, a teenage boy discovering himself becomes love-stricken by Malèna, a sensual woman living in a small, narrow-minded Italian town.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweJoaquin PhoenixConnie NielsenA former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery.
- DirectorMario MonicelliStarsVittorio GassmanAdolfo CeliSandro DoriAfter saving an infant of royal blood, knight Brancaleone forms a new army and sets out to return the baby to his father: a prince fighting in the Crusades.
- DirectorNeil MarshallStarsMichael FassbenderDominic WestOlga KurylenkoA splinter group of Roman soldiers fight for their lives behind enemy lines after their legion is devastated in a guerrilla attack.
- DirectorGabriele SalvatoresStarsDiego AbatantuonoClaudio BigagliGiuseppe CedernaIn WW2, an Italian Army unit of misfits occupies an isolated non-strategic Greek island for the duration of the war.
- DirectorJohn FrankenheimerStarsAndrew McCarthySharon StoneValeria GolinoIn 1978, a journalist and a photojournalist, both young Americans, had a close encounter with Red Brigades terrorists in Rome.
- DirectorMarshall HerskovitzStarsCatherine McCormackRufus SewellOliver PlattA Venetian courtesan becomes a hero to her city, but later becomes the target of an inquisition by the Church for witchcraft.
- DirectorJohn MaddenStarsNicolas CagePenélope CruzJohn HurtWhen a fisherman leaves to fight with the Greek army during World War II, his fiancée falls in love with the local Italian commander.
- DirectorMoustapha AkkadStarsAnthony QuinnOliver ReedRod SteigerIn 1929, Italian Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini appoints General Rodolfo Graziani as colonial governor to Italian Libya with orders to stamp-out all resistance from Libyan nationalists led by rebel guerrilla leader Omar Mukhtar.
- DirectorWilliam WylerStarsCharlton HestonJack HawkinsStephen BoydAfter a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend in 1st-century Jerusalem, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.
- DirectorTimur BekmambetovStarsJack HustonToby KebbellRodrigo SantoroJudah Ben-Hur, a Jewish prince falsely accused of treason by his adopted brother, an officer in the Roman army, returns to his homeland after years at sea to seek revenge, but finds redemption.
- DirectorFatih AkinStarsBarnaby MetschuratMoritz BleibtreuChristian TascheIn the sixties Romano Amato, his wife Rosa and their two sons Giancarlo and Gigi emigrate from Solino in Italy to Duisburg in the Ruhr area and establish the first Pizza restaurant in town. Their business emerges well and both children get used to Germany. 10 years later the brothers fall in love with the same woman; they break tie with each other in anger and Gigi returns to Solino with his mother. A decade later both meet again and have a retrospect on their lives.
- DirectorEmanuele CrialeseStarsCharlotte GainsbourgVincenzo AmatoVincent SchiavelliA Sicilian peasant begins the journey to the promised land and meets a beautiful Englishwoman. But neither is prepared for the harsh realities of Ellis Island. Can they make it through the golden door to the America of their dreams?
- DirectorFederico FelliniStarsFreddie JonesBarbara JeffordVictor PolettiIn 1914, a luxury ship leaves Italy in order to scatter the ashes of a famous opera singer. A lovable bumbling journalist chronicles the voyage and meets the singer's many eccentric friends and admirers.
- DirectorMarco BellocchioStarsGiovanna MezzogiornoFilippo TimiFausto Russo AlesiThe story of Mussolini's secret lover, Ida Dalser, and their son Albino.
- StarsSusan SarandonAnthony HopkinsBob HoskinsA compelling drama and documentary chronicling the life and death of Il Duce (Bob Hoskins), from his days as a terrorist, to his alliance with Hitler, to the betrayal of his son-in-law, and untimely demise.
- DirectorCarlo LizzaniStarsRod SteigerFranco NeroLisa GastoniIn 1945, the dictator of fascist Italy and Hitler's close ally Benito Mussolini faces defeat. In a desperate attempt to avoid capture, he tries to flee the country with his lover Claretta Petacci, but Italian partisans are on their tail.
- DirectorFranco ZeffirelliStarsMaggie SmithJudi DenchJoan PlowrightAn orphaned Italian boy is raised amongst a circle of British and American women living in Mussolini's Italy before and during World War II.