Piccolo mondo antico (1941)

Franco, a young man of noble descent, decides to marry Luisa, daughter of a humble clerk, against his grandmother's will. But a terrible tragedy upsets the life of the newly married couple:... See full summary »

Director:

Mario Soldati

Writers:

Antonio Fogazzaro (novel), Mario Bonfantini (adaptation),

Stars:

Alida Valli, Massimo Serato, Ada Dondini

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alida Valli	...	Luisa Rigey Maironi
Massimo Serato	...	Franco Maironi
Ada Dondini	...	La marchesa Orsola Maironi
Annibale Betrone	...	Zio Piero
Mariù Pascoli	...	Ombretta Maironi
Giacinto Molteni	...	Il professore Beniamino Gilardoni
Elvira Bonecchi	...	La signora Barborin Pasotti
Enzo Biliotti	...	Il signor Pasotti
Renato Cialente	...	Von Greisberg
Adele Garavaglia	...	La signora Teresa Rigey
Carlo Tamberlani	...	Don Costa
Giovanni Barrella	...	Il curato di Puria
Nino Marchetti	...	Pedraglio, il cospiratore
Giorgio Costantini	...	L'avvocato di Varenna
Jone Morino	...	Donna Eugenia

Storyline

Franco, a young man of noble descent, decides to marry Luisa, daughter of a humble clerk, against his grandmother's will. But a terrible tragedy upsets the life of the newly married couple: their little daughter Ombretta drowns in Lake Como and Luisa goes to the brink of madness...

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Plot Keywords:

lake como | lake | marriage | class conflict | uncle | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

10 April 1941 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Old-Fashioned World

Filming Locations:

FERT Studios, Turin, Piedmont, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Artisti Tecnici Associati (ATA), Industrie Cinematografiche Italiane (ICI)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Of Life and Love (1953)

User Reviews

PICCOLO MONDO ANTICO (Mario Soldati, 1941) ***

Yet another film about the Italian Risorgimento, a subject which I've always found fascinating given that I studied Italian history in my childhood! Despite the meticulous period detail of the production, the film's tone is an intimate one and, apart from the class struggle manifest in the narrative, is not overtly political either.

The acting by the two leads - Alida Valli and Massimo Serrato - is fine (the former in particular when, towards the end, she almost goes mad with grief over her little daughter's tragic death), but so is the supporting cast which includes such stereotypes as the jovial but perennially hungry chaplain and the harridan aristocratic matriarch, clinging to a fading way of life, who stands in the way of the young couple's happiness. However, some of the characters speak in a heavy dialect which - even to one who is fluent in the language as I am - is practically impossible to decipher!