The Visit (1964)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Bernhard Wicki

Writers:

Ben Barzman (screenplay)
Friedrich Dürrenmatt (play)

Release Date:

11 September 1964 (Finland)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

"I want my lover killed..." She will corrupt a whole town to buy the death of the man who betrayed her!

Plot:

Carla Zachanassian had a child by Serge Miller as a teenager. When Serge refused to marry her, she was driven out of town...

Plot Keywords:

Rural | Murder | Greed | Foreign Language Adaptation | Reunion

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Ingrid Bergman	...	Karla Zachanassian
Anthony Quinn	...	Serge Miller
Irina Demick	...	Anya
Paolo Stoppa	...	Doctor
Hans Christian Blech	...	Captain Dobrik
Romolo Valli	...	Town Painter
Valentina Cortese	...	Mathilda Miller
Claude Dauphin	...	Bardick
Eduardo Ciannelli	...	Innkeeper
Marco Guglielmi	...	Chesco
Jacques Dufilho	...	Fisch
Giorgio Sciommer	...	Hair Stylist
Fausto Tozzi	...	Darvis
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Inna Alexeievna
Mario Mandalari Andersen
María Badmajew		(as Maria Badmayer)
Silla Bettini
Roberto Bruno
Delia Casciani
Pina D'Alvia
Ermelinda De Felice		(as Linda De Felice)
Gustavo De Nardo	...	Station Master
Giovanni Di Benedetto		(as Gianni De Benedetto)
Marianne Leibl
Ignazio Leone
Giancarlo Lolli
Lelio Luttazzi	...	1st Idler
Dante Maggio	...	Cadek
Tiberio Mitri	...	Ahtlet
Linda Moretti
Richard Münch	...	Teacher
Renzo Palmer	...	Conductor
Umberto Raho
Carlo Reali
Marcella Rovena	...	Mayor's Wife
Ernst Schröder	...	Mayor
Leonard Steckel	...	Priest
Jacopo Tecchi
Lina Tedeschi

Also Known As:

Der Besuch (West Germany)
Karla (West Germany) (working title)
La rancune (France)
La vendetta della signora (Italy)
La visite (France) (working title)
La visite de la vieille dame (France) (working title)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA | West Germany | France | Italy

Language:

English | French

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:16 | UK:X (cut) | Finland:K-16 | Portugal:17 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Ponte Galeria, Capranica, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Cinecittà

Trivia:

The New York production of "The Visit" by Friedrich Dürrenmatt, adapted by Maurice Valency, opened at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater (And starred Lunt and Fontanne) in New York on Nov. 29, 1958, ran for 189 performances and was nominated for the 1959 Tony Award for the Best Play.

Movie Connections:

Version of Der Besuch der alten Dame (1982) (TV)

A Unique Performance by Ingrid Bergman

Too often, there are many films that are hidden away from the public even though they are really very well written and well acted movies. "The Visit" is one of these movies, unfortunately, not available on video or DVD. The story is of a poor young girl who leaves a mythical country in Europe (Bergman) only to return years later as the richest woman in the world! The way the movie opens is with a train going across the landscape which adds to the suspense because of the title of the film and the town in this mythical country is very anxious and glad that Karla is coming to visit them since they are poverty stricken. A rare gem, the story is solid and interesting--not like the critics said about it being choppy and hard to follow--and Ms. Bergman's costumes are an eyeful. Anthony Quinn is her leading man and together they both deliver more than fine performances, Ms. Bergman's being the strongest. If you ever see this film, you won't regret it. Put a tape in your VCR to record yourself a copy as "The Visit" is a haunting film with moral issues that are unusual for the time in which it is filmed. This is one you will want to see definitely more than once. You've never seen Ingrid Bergman like this!