La grande strada azzurra (1957)

Squarciò, a fisherman, lives with his family on a small island off the Dalmatian coast of Italy. Like his fellow villagers, Squarciò struggles against harsh living conditions, a scarcity of... See full summary »

Directors:

Gillo Pontecorvo, Maleno Malenotti

Writers:

Franco Solinas (novel), Ennio De Concini (screenplay),

Stars:

Yves Montand, Alida Valli, Francisco Rabal

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Yves Montand	...	Giovanni Squarciò
Alida Valli	...	Rosetta, la moglie
Francisco Rabal	...	Salvatore
Umberto Spadaro	...	Gaspare Puggioni, 1st Coast Guard Officer
Peter Carsten	...	Riva, 2nd Coast Guard Officer
Federica Ranchi	...	Diana Squarciò, la figlia
Terence Hill	...	Renato (as Mario Girotti)
Ronaldo Bonacchi	...	Bore Squarciò, il figlio (as Ronaldino Bonacchi)
Giancarlo Soblone	...	Antonio 'Tonino' Squarciò, il figlio
Josip Batistic
Stane Potokar
Angelo Zanolli
Giorgio Kuru
Janez Vrhovec
Milutin Jasnic

Storyline

Squarciò, a fisherman, lives with his family on a small island off the Dalmatian coast of Italy. Like his fellow villagers, Squarciò struggles against harsh living conditions, a scarcity of fish in nearby waters and exploitation by the local wholesaler. But while the other fishermen continue to use nets, he goes out to the open sea to fish illegally with bombs. But Squarciò borrows money, loses his boat, and in a moment of supreme desperation, has to bomb directly off-shore, causing the hatred and rejection of his fellow fishermen. Trying to save his family, Squarciò and his young sons sail their new boat out beyond the local waters and bomb-fish again. But this time, the sea exacts a terrible toll...

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Plot Keywords:

bomb | boat | fisherman | island | italy | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Details

Country:

Italy France West Germany Yugoslavia

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

22 November 1957 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Wide Blue Road

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$6,741 (USA) (8 June 2001)

Gross:

$6,741 (USA) (8 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

G.E.S.I. Cinematografica, Play Art, Eichberg-Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Ferraniacolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.00 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Cinemania (2002)

User Reviews

To be released on DVD soon!

An extraordinarily vibrant and engaging Neo-Realist film in truly magnificent color (Ferraniacolor!). Pontecorvo's first feature is an emotionally powerful film, driven by his usual, but earnest political and sociological motivations. Yves Montand's fisherman Squarciù is an obstinate and sometimes inflexible soul, yet the passion of his convictions and his love and concerns for his family, redeem him in the end.

LA GRANDE STRADA AZZURRA - THE WIDE BLUE ROAD, is soon to be released on DVD by Milestone Films and Video, thanks especially to Jonathan Demme and Dustin Hoffman who absolutely love this film and helped to finance its restoration for theatrical American release.