The Secret of Santa Vittoria (1969)

During WWII in Italy, a wine producing village hide a million bottles from the Germans

Director:

Stanley Kramer

Writers:

Robert Crichton (novel), William Rose (screenplay by)

Stars:

Anthony Quinn, Anna Magnani, Virna Lisi

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anthony Quinn	...	Bombolini
Anna Magnani	...	Rosa
Virna Lisi	...	Caterina
Hardy Krüger	...	Capt. von Prum (as Hardy Kruger)
Sergio Franchi	...	Tufa
Renato Rascel	...	Babbaluche
Giancarlo Giannini	...	Fabio
Patrizia Valturri	...	Angela
Eduardo Ciannelli	...	Luigi
Leopoldo Trieste	...	Vittorini
Gigi Ballista	...	Padre Polenta
Quinto Parmeggiani	...	Copa
Carlo Caprioli	...	Giovanni Pietrosanto
Francesco Mulè	...	Francucci (as Francesco Mulé)
Wolfgang Jansen	...	Sgt. Zopf

Storyline

Bombolini is a fairly worthless drunk in the small Italian town of Santa Vittoria in the closing days of World War II. When word comes that the Fascist government has surrendered, he climbs a water tower to tear down the flag. He can't get down and someone gets the crowd to chant his name to give him confidence. The Fascist town council hears this and believes that he is the town's new leader. They surrender to him and make him the new mayor. He rises to the occasion and when he finds that the Germans plan to occupy his town and take their wine (over a million bottles) he works out a plan to hide it.

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Plot Keywords:

wine | bottle | mayor | italy | city hall | 

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Taglines:

Bombolini was a drunkard, a clown and a fool. This motion picture is about the making of a hero.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Anthony Quinn and Giancarlo Gianni worked togheter again in "A walk in the clouds" in 1995

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Goofs

When Tufa the deserter, meets Caterina after being released by the Germans, Caterina places the bread knife parallel to the side of the cutting board. Next shot, the knife is away from the cutting board with the blade pointing away from the cutting board.

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Quotes

Priest: [Bombolini wants the priest to pray for the rain to stop while the villagers move the wine] Nobody ever prays for sun, they only pray for rain.
Babbaluche: In Noah's ark people prayed for rain?
Priest: That was before organised religion.
Babbaluche: Sure, all they had was God, the poor bastards.

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Connections

Referenced in Anthony Quinn: An Original (1990)

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Soundtracks

The Song of Santa Vittoria (Stay)
Music by Ernest Gold
Lyrics by Norman Gimbel
Sung by Sergio Franchi

User Reviews

Very good Quinn

I missed the first half hour on Turner last night, but tuned in and was thoroughly entertained. This is top notch Anthony Quinn- he is terrific, and the entire cast is excellent. Looking forward to seeing the entire film now. Unlike another reviewer, I loved his over-the-top reaction to the German Captain's telling him he wanted the village's wine. Hardy Kruger, as the captain, gives a nuanced performance that adds a great deal to the film.

One of the great joys of this movie is the Italian location and extras. The economics of contemporary movie making rarely allow for true location shooting anymore, and its too bad. As these films from the 60s and 70s age, they become increasingly valuable as an historical record.

This movie also has a wonderful heart- it's a celebration of what makes life worth living. Highly recommended.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 February 1970 (Finland)

Also Known As:

The Secret of Santa Vittoria

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$6,300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Stanley Kramer Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

139 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1