Roma (1972)

A fluid, unconnected and sometimes chaotic procession of scenes detailing the various people and events of life in Italy's capital, most of it based on director Federico Fellini's life.

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Federico Fellini (story), Bernardino Zapponi (story)

Stars:

Britta Barnes, Peter Gonzales Falcon, Fiona Florence

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Peter Gonzales Falcon	...	Fellini, Age 18 (as Peter Gonzales)
Fiona Florence	...	Dolores - Young Prostitute
Britta Barnes
Pia De Doses	...	Princess Domitilla
Marne Maitland	...	Guide in the Catacombs
Renato Giovannoli	...	Cardinal Ottaviani
Elisa Mainardi	...	Pharmacist's wife / Cinema spectator
Stefano Mayore	...	Fellini as a Child
Galliano Sbarra	...	Music Hall Compere
Anna Magnani	...	Anna Magnani
Ginette Marcelle Bron	...	(as Marcelle-Ginette Bron)
Gore Vidal	...	Self
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Marie Párová

Storyline

A virtually plotless, gaudy, impressionistic portrait of Rome through the eyes of one of its most famous citizens. blending autobiography (a reconstruction of Fellini's own arrival in Rome during the Mussolini years; a trip to a brothel and a music-hall) with scenes from present-day Roman life (a massive traffic jam on the autostrada; a raucous journey through Rome after dark; following an archaeological team through the site of the Rome subways; an unforgettable ecclesiastical fashion show)

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Plot Keywords:

brothel | panties | female nudity | orgy | nudity | 

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Taglines:

The fall of the Roman Empire 1931-1972.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

First feature film appearance of Cassandra Peterson, better known as Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Fellini spotted her in Rome where she was singing with a small band and asked her to be in this film. She played several small uncredited parts throughout with no speaking lines. Peterson said in an interview years later that her total screen time was less than 30 seconds. But she said she enjoyed it and that Fellini was "a great guy."

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Goofs

Peter Gonzales Falcon's hairstyles are all in the longish 1972 mode, even though the portions of the film in which he appears are supposed to be taking place thirty or more years earlier, at which time men's hair was cut much, much shorter, and would never be worn as it appears in this film.

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Quotes

Gore Vidal: You ask me why an American writer would want to live in Rome. First of all, because I like Romans. They don't give a damn if you're dead or alive. They're neutral, like cats. Rome is the city of illusions. It's not merely by chance that you have the church, the government, the cinema. They each produce illusions, like you do and like I do.

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Alternate Versions

Originally released in a 128 minutes version. Later cut to 119 minutes.

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Connections

Featured in How Strange to Be Named Federico (2013)

User Reviews

A guide to Roma, Fellini style, go see it!

Whereas a film like 'Bueno Vista Social Club' depicts a poor city in a charming and loving way this depicts the not so charming aspects of a relatively rich city, still with lots of heart and irony though. We get several episodes in this non-documentary like one about traffic, one about whorehouses, one about peaceful hippies being beaten by the police, one about the digging of tunnels for the metro system and so on. There is a frame story about Fellini, first about the young Fellini learning about the old Roma, then about how Roma is now, its not so important, but its well integrated into the whole story and shows how personal this film is.

We get bombarded with the rude, the noisy and the chaos, as usual for Fellini a lots of things are happening all the time so don't watch it while not up and awake so to speak. The implications are many, the comments likewise. Its never sentimental, but it still opts for change.

Wait a minute, isn't the Vatican in Roma(in double sense)? Well, check for yourself.

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian German English French Latin Spanish

Release Date:

15 October 1972 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fellini's Roma

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ultra Film, Les Productions Artistes Associés

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1