Senso (1954)

A troubled and neurotic Italian Countess betrays her entire country for a self-destructive love affair with an Austrian Lieutenant.

Director:

Luchino Visconti

Writers:

Luchino Visconti (story), Suso Cecchi D'Amico (story)

Stars:

Farley Granger, Alida Valli, Massimo Girotti

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Farley Granger	...	Il tenente Franz Mahler
Alida Valli	...	La contessa Livia Serpieri
Massimo Girotti	...	Il marchese Roberto Ussoni
Heinz Moog	...	Il conte Serpieri
Rina Morelli	...	Laura, la governante
Christian Marquand	...	Un ufficiale boemo
Sergio Fantoni	...	Luca
Tino Bianchi	...	Il capitano Meucci
Ernst Nadherny	...	Il comandante della piazza di Verona
Tonio Selwart	...	Il colonello Kleist
Marcella Mariani	...	Clara, la prostituta

Storyline

Venezia, spring of 1866, in the last days of the Austrian occupation. A performance of Il Trovatore ends up in confusion due to an anti-Austrian demonstration, organised by Count Ussoni. His cousin Countess Serpieri falls in love with vile Austrian Lieutenant Franz Mahler, but the times are changing.

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Plot Keywords:

italy | love | venezia | betrayal | opera | 

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance | War

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian German

Release Date:

8 July 1968 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Wanton Contessa

Filming Locations:

Rielo di San Daniele, Castello, Venice, Veneto, Italy

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,984, 28 October 2018, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$24,960, 6 December 2018

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lux Film

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min 93 min (edited/dubbed) 123 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Luchino Visconti originally wanted the film to star Marlon Brando Ingrid Bergman.

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Quotes

Il tenente Franz Mahler: It's too late! It's over! I'm not your romantic hero!

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Alternate Versions

At the end of Robert Osborne's TCM introduction to the film (June 2005) he states: "By the way, what we're about to see is Visconti's original version of this film, not the abbreviated English-language version that originally played in America - so this is a big treat."

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Connections

Featured in Luchino Visconti (1999)

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Soundtracks

D'amor sull'ali rosee
(uncredited)
(from "Il Trovatore; Act 4")
Music by Giuseppe Verdi
Performed by Anita Cerquetti

User Reviews

An epic romance from post war Italy.

I have rated this film 9 because of it's length, there are some ponderous moments, but otherwise it is a 10. Italian cinema was still having growing pains from the war, but this epic succeeds, and skillfully incorporates the war torn landscape into this tale of an earlier war. The music score is very big and melodramatic, but fitting. The film opens with an opera in an enormous opera house, and this is fitting for the grand scale and operatic scope of this romance and the background. This is "Gone With the Wind" - Italian style - with a much more sympathetic heroine.

I am a fan of Alida Valli and have sought out her work. Perhaps because this is in her native Italian, and/or because of her Italian director, she is a full, vital, feminine woman in this film; very different from her more restrained work in America. (Her breathtaking performance in "The Paradine Case" is a study in austerity and an almost masculine stillness.) I had hoped that we would see a more free actress in her native language, and we do! She flutters and tosses her hair, she is a Countess reveling in her earthy affair. This is a full bodied performance.

Farley Granger's performance, whether in response to Valli, or just given a really meaty bad-boy to play, is a total revelation. He is lusty and sexy, provocative, pouty and passionate. In one scene, he greets her by wordlessly grabbing her hand and almost devouring it with kisses. This is a rare film where both the woman AND the man have real powerhouse roles. The confrontation scene at the end is gripping.

A small but pivotal role is played by Marcella Mariani. Her cow-like leadenness, laced with sisterhood, bespeaks a worldliness that, paired with her ethereal youthful beauty is just wrenching. All supporting roles, especially the maids, are interesting and give a sense of intrigue throughout.

A previous reviewer mentioned that the outcome of a major plot point is cut out, which leaves you wondering... "but what happened with that?" Still, the major story is the romance, which I think will be satisfying for men as well as women, because both sides are given such full emotional life. IF YOU CAN FIND IT, it is an enjoyable, big emotion, epic wartime romance.