Il caso Moro (1986)

Director:

Giuseppe Ferrara

Writers:

Robert Katz (book)
Armenia Balducci (screenplay) ...

Genre:

Crime | Drama | History

Plot:

On March 16 1978, the Red Brigade kidnap the Chief of the Christian Democraty, the party in power in Italy since the end of the war...

Plot Keywords:

Italy | Terrorism | Italian Intelligence | Brigate Rosse | 1970s

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Gian Maria Volonté	...	Aldo Moro
Mattia Sbragia	...	1st Brigadist
Bruno Zanin	...	2nd Brigadist
Consuelo Ferrara	...	3rd Brigadist
Enrica Maria Modugno	...	4th Brigadist
Enrica Rosso	...	5th Brigadist
Maurizio Donadoni	...	6th Brigadist
Stefano Abbati	...	7th Brigadist
Danilo Mattei	...	8th Brigadist
Massimo Tedde	...	9th Brigadist
Francesco Capitano	...	10th Brigadist
Margarita Lozano	...	Nora Moro
Sergio Rubini	...	Giovanni Moro
Daniela De Silva	...	Maria Fida Moro
Emanuela Taschini	...	Anna Moro

Also Known As:

The Moro Affair

Runtime:

110 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Filming Locations:

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Yarno Cinematografica

Movie Connections:

Version of Buongiorno, notte (2003)

Very interesting document about an Italian mystery

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

In 1978 Italy faces its most dramatical period since the end of World War II: the kidnapping of Democratic Christian party leader Aldo Moro by the Red Brigades (Brigate Rosse). That year Moro is going to form a government with the Italian Communist party: it's an historical compromise. On March 16, in the morning, Aldo Moro is traveling with his escort from home to the Parlament, where he's supposed to start formally the new government. During the travel there's an ambuscade: all the escort men are killed, whereas the politician is kidnapped. A 55 days period of anguish begins. Whereas police search for Moro's den, the terrorist organization of the Red Brigades ask the Italian State a political recognition and the freedom for some political prisoners. Otherwise Moro will be killed. But Italian government chooses not to negotiate with terrorists. Moro is found dead in a car's boot, on May 9 1978.

For people who don't know Italian facts this could be only a thriller story, but that's reality.

"Il caso Moro" was made 8 years later, in 1986. The film is very interesting because it describes an episode which shocked completely Italy and the rest of the world. We don't know if the film gives an exact portrait of what happened. I think it's impossible, because many things of this story are not yet clear after almost 30 years. The movie shows different inexactitudes and mistakes that Italian government consciously made during the investigation for Moro's prison. Moro was let die because he was an adversary for everyone... His political feelings were too open to the Left, and many people in his party and outside it were not happy for. Italian Secret service as well wasn't happy. CIA too. Many Italian authorities who were supposed to save Moro's life were part of P2 Lodge, an extremely right wing organization connected to Police, Secret Services and CIA... The film tells that all these people wanted Moro to die.

As I said, the truth is still unknown. What the movie says are a group of hypothesis, although many have been proved right. But the complete truth still doesn't exist.

Many people don't agree with director Giuseppe Ferrara's point of view -and when the picture was released everyone, as always in Italy, was unsatisfied and spoke of a scandalous movie! The film has by the way the merit of asking questions.

It's interesting to compare this film with Marco Bellocchio's "Buongiorno notte", which treats the same subject and was made later (in 2002). there are some differences -because meanwhile new fragments of truth has emerged.

"Il caso Moro" is written like a thriller and works very well. There's a lot of passion and drama, obviously, but nothing seems exaggerated. Because above all this is a story of Âldo Moro's loneliness as a human being. It's a man who feels betrayed by the ideal he has fought for and feels let alone by his friends (politicians).

Only one actor could be so wonderful in this performance: Gian Maria Volonté, who gives us another lesson of acting. That's another milestone in his career