Cronache di poveri amanti (1954)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Carlo Lizzani

Writers:

Vasco Pratolini (novel)
Sergio Amidei (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

6 February 1954 (Italy)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

In 1925 the young florentine typographer Mario moves to via del Corno to be near his girl-friend Bianca...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Worker | Friendship | Youth | Italian Fascism

Awards:

3 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

Anna-Maria Ferrero	...	Gesuina (as Anna Maria Ferrero)
Cosetta Greco	...	Elisa
Antonella Lualdi	...	Milena Campolmi
Marcello Mastroianni	...	Ugo
Bruno Berellini	...	Carlino Bencini
Irene Cefaro	...	Clara
Adolfo Consolini	...	Maciste
Giuliano Montaldo	...	Alfredo Campolmi
Gabriele Tinti	...	Mario Parigi
Eva Vanicek	...	Bianca Quagliotti
Wanda Capodaglio	...	La Signora
Mimmo Maggio
Andrea Petricca
Garibaldo Lucii	...	Staderini
Mario Piloni	...	Osvaldo

Also Known As:

Chronicle of Poor Lovers (USA)

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono | Mono (Western Electric Recording)

Filming Locations:

Incir De Paolis Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Cooperativa Spettatori Produttori Cinematografici

Trivia:

The film met with vehement opposition from the Italian government and was banned from export after it received the Special Jury Award at Cannes.

Half-baked rendition of a good novel

This movie could probably have been a successful production, if it was realized in a different way, but the emphasis in which nearly all characters are over-stating themselves throughout its length makes it somewhat slow and uninteresting.

As it often happens with adaptation of literary works for the silver screen, the style of this movie is rather different from that of the novel from which is taken, but the atmosphere of the working-class neighborhood in the Florence of mid-1920s is quite well rendered.

The cast too is full of very good players, both famous or soon-to-be famous, like Mastroianni, Ferrero, Lualdi and Greco, and remarkable features by some lesser known but noteworthy presences such as Giuliano Montaldo (which later will acquire his own fame as movie director), and Wanda Capodaglio, unrivaled queen of the Italian stage for nearly 50 years, who plays the unnamed "Lady Loanshark".

Adolfo Consolini, a famous Italian athlete, twice world record holder and 1948 Olympic champion of discus throw, very appropriately lends his well-built body to the character of Maciste.

The only action sequence of this movie, with Ugo and Maciste trying to reach the houses of some anti-fascists and warn them before the violent mob gets there first, is very nailing and well made. Too bad the rest of the movie is not as entertaining as it could have been.

If you are interested in the history of Italian movies and contemporary literature, try watching this one, but only after reading the novel.