The Last Judgment (1961)

In Naples, a voice from the skies announces one morning that the final judgment will be at 6 p.m. on that day. What follows is a series of vignettes depicting various people's reactions (or lack there of) to the announcement.

Director:

Vittorio De Sica

Writer:

Cesare Zavattini (story, adaptation and screenplay)

Stars:

Nicola Rossi-Lemeni, Elli Davis, Fernandel

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nicola Rossi-Lemeni	...	God (voice)
Elli Davis	...	The blonde
Fernandel	...	The widower
Georges Rivière	...	Gianni (as George Riviere)
Paolo Stoppa	...	Giorgio
Anouk Aimée	...	Giorgio's wife Irene
Don Jaime de Mora y Aragón	...	Ambassador
Melina Mercouri	...	Foreign lady
Nino Manfredi	...	Waiter
Vittorio Gassman	...	Cimino
Renato Rascel	...	Coppola
Vittorio De Sica	...	Defense lawyer
Silvana Mangano	...	Signora Matteoni
Jack Palance	...	Matteoni
Mike Bongiorno	...	Himself

Storyline

Una possente e misteriosa voce echeggia nel cielo di Napoli : annuncia l'inizio del Giudizio Universale, alle sei di quella sera. Così una folla di personaggi si muove eccitata sotto l'influenza di quella implacabile voce. Dopo l'inizio del grosso processo, al quale tutti possono sentirsi presenti attraverso la televisione, il Giudizio è bruscamente interrotto da una pioggia torrenziale. E' un acquazzone che ha rimpiazzato drasticamente e definitivamente il Giudizio, cancellando la Terra ed i suoi mali ? Niente affatto, si tratta solo di una violenta tempesta, che pian piano si esaurisce. Così, quando la paura finisce, tutti tornano alle consuete (e non sempre benevoli) abitudini, dimenticando tutte le migliori intenzioni di redenzione avute appena qualche ora prima, influenzati dal terrore della imminente fine.

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Plot Keywords:

napoli | commedia all'italiana | italian comedy | tv | storm | 

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian English

Release Date:

26 October 1961 (Italy)

Also Known As:

The Last Judgment

Filming Locations:

Naples, Campania, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dino de Laurentiis Cinematografica,Standard Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The voices of Ernest Borgnine, Akim Tamiroff, Jimmy Durante, Jack Palance, Fernandel and Melina Mercouri were dubbed into Italian by other actors.

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Connections

Edited into Come inguaiammo il cinema italiano - La vera storia di Franco e Ciccio (2004)

User Reviews

Playing With Our Fears

The great duo: Vittorio de Sica and Cesare Zavatine present us with a hyper, neo-realistic, surreal vision of our fears in a magic mixture of horrors and joyfulness. Black and white and color, hope and desolation with an ensemble cast that it's as bizarre as it is extraordinary. Alberto Sordi, Melina Mercouri, Vittorio Gassman, Anouk Aimee, Jack Palance, Ernest Borgnine even Jimmy Durante and Renato Rascel. The interconnecting vignettes have an inexorable point of reference. The end of the world. The film, at times, appears to be a "divertimento" that builds to something apocalyptic and finishes in a hurried fizzling note, but it is in fact a superb exercise playing wittily with the fear of our ultimate and unavoidable demise. Among the many delights that the film offers there is a superlative performance by Alberto Sordi in one the most repellent characters in his long collection of repellent characters. A strange, funny, unsettling and fascinating film.