L'avventura (1960)

A woman disappears during a Mediterranean boating trip. But during the search, her lover and her best friend become attracted to each other.

Director:

Michelangelo Antonioni

Writers:

Michelangelo Antonioni (story), Michelangelo Antonioni (screenplay),

Stars:

Gabriele Ferzetti, Monica Vitti, Lea Massari

Nominated for 2 BAFTA Film Awards. Another 5 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gabriele Ferzetti	...	Sandro
Monica Vitti	...	Claudia
Lea Massari	...	Anna
Dominique Blanchar	...	Giulia
Renzo Ricci	...	Anna's Father
James Addams	...	Corrado
Dorothy De Poliolo	...	Gloria Perkins
Lelio Luttazzi	...	Raimondo
Giovanni Petti	...	Prince Goffredo (as Giovanni Petrucci)
Esmeralda Ruspoli	...	Patrizia
Jack O'Connell	...	Old man on the island
Angela Tommasi Di Lampedusa	...	The Princess
Franco Cimino
Prof. Cucco	...	Ettore
Giovanni Danesi

Storyline

A group of rich Italians head out on a yachting trip to a deserted volcanic island in the Mediterranean. When they are about to leave the island, they find Anna, the main character up to this point, has gone missing. Sandro, Anna's boyfriend, and Claudia, Anna's friend, try without success to find her. While looking for the missing friend, Claudia and Sandro develop an attraction for each other. When they get back to land, they continue the search with no success. Sandro and Claudia proceed to become lovers, and all but forget about the missing Anna.

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Plot Keywords:

friend | island | search | sicily | yacht | 

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Taglines:

A new adventure in filmmaking...

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Mr Bongo Films

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian English

Release Date:

4 March 1961 (USA)

Also Known As:

La aventura

Filming Locations:

Aeolian Islands, Messina, Sicily, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cino del Duca, Produzioni Cinematografiche Europee (P.C.E.), Societé Cinématographique Lyre

Technical Specs

Runtime:

143 min 102 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.75 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

First part of the unofficial "Incommunicability Trilogy" with La Notte and L'eclisse. Michelangelo Antonioni didn't make the three movies as a trilogy, but cinema historians have called it so since then.

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Goofs

During the sequence in which Sandro and the newspaper reporter cross a street, the shadows of the camera and the crew are clearly and prolongedly visible on the actors and on the street surface.

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Quotes

Sandro: Why should we be here talking, arguing? Believe me Anna, words are becoming less and less necessary; they create misunderstandings.

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Connections

Referenced in A Decade Under the Influence (2003)

User Reviews

Shallow Characters In A Very Deep Film

There's something strange going on in this film.

The first time I watched it, it seemed to wash over me without affecting me in anyway. Later on(and I've read this in other people's comments here as well) I found images and dialogue from the movie creeping into my subconscious; entire dreams would take place upon the island where Anna goes missing(often in monochrome), or I'd start to compare real life events to those that occur during the film. Did Antonioni plant subliminal messages within the movie? Probably not. It's more likely the masterful pace he employs here, coupled with the busy, deep cinematography is the cause of this. Notice how the backgrounds NEVER go out of focus, no matter how much is going on within the frame. Check out the scene about an hour and ten minutes in, where Sandro and the old man are talking in the middle of an extremely busy street; nothing blurs or goes out of focus, even when a tram comes in and out of the shot, nothing loses it's perspective, and as the scene ends and they walk deep into the shot we can see way past them and far, far into the distance.

This seems to be why the film has such a deep affect on the subconscious. The characters are deliberately shallow and are placed at the very foreground of every shot, yet the backgrounds are rich tableaux bustling with life. In the scenes on the island where Anna disappears, we see the main characters always in shot, yet in the background there is a feeling that something strange within nature itself is going on. The darkening of the clouds, the sudden mist upon the water, the rocks falling to the sea, even the sudden appearance of the old hermit character, all give a certain unease.

There's also the haunting feeling of the film, as Anna's friends begin, almost immediately to forget about her. Soon, they don't seem to care a jot about her, and neither, in a sense, do we. It's this feeling of loose ends and guilt on our part(for joining her so called 'friends' in forgetting about her so quickly) that leaves the deepest impression. The characters in this film are so morally shallow(the ending bears this out) yet they are the reason this film leaves such a strong impression on those who watch it, and who become captivated by it.

I cant recommend this film to everyone because I know that the Hollywood Blockbuster has reduced most modern cinema-goers attention spans to almost zero. But if you fancy a challenge, or merely wish to luxuriate in classic cinema.....begin here.