Rome, 1870. Opponents of the church power are being sent to prison. Some of the exhausted prisoners are asking for the mercy of Pope. Others, like Augusto Parenti, prefer to fight for their rights until the end. His wife, Teresa is a simple woman, who gets involved with the rebels.
Acting
Magnani's volcanic restraint, Mastroianni's exhausted nobility
Production
Rome recreated on strained 1972 budget, somehow works
Director
Alfredo Giannetti
Anna Magnani
Teresa Parenti
Marcello Mastroianni
Augusto Parenti
Mario Carotenuto
Don Aldo
Osvaldo Ruggeri
Nino Colasanti
Franco Balducci
Remo Bezzi
Luciano Bonanni
Compagno di Augusto in carcere
Winni Riva
Sora Nannina
Massimo Sarchielli
Anselmo il ciabattino
Giulio Paradisi
Compagno di Augusto in carcere
Duilio Cruciani
Mario, il loro figlio
Aldo Cecconi
Graduato
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Made during Italy's Years of Lead, when leftist violence and state repression made 1870's church-state conflicts uncomfortably current. Giannetti was working through present trauma in period drag.
Magnani and Mastroianni had explosive on-set fights about billing and scene-stealing—ironically perfect preparation for playing a disintegrating marriage.
IT
