'Tis Pity She's a Whore (1971)

Annabella marries Soranzo, when she is pregnant by her brother Giovanni. Destiny, and jealousies will expose her past, and Soranzo broods revenge. But he is not alone in that - and death will unite all.

Director:

Giuseppe Patroni Griffi

Writers:

John Ford (play), Alfio Valdarnini (screenplay) (as Alfio Valdarini)

Stars:

Charlotte Rampling, Oliver Tobias, Fabio Testi

2 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Charlotte Rampling	...	Annabella / Giovanni's sister
Oliver Tobias	...	Giovanni / Annabella's brother
Fabio Testi	...	Soranzo / Annabella's husband
Antonio Falsi	...	Bonaventura
Rik Battaglia	...	Mercante / the father (as Rick Battaglia)
Angela Luce	...	Mercante's governess
Rino Imperio	...	Soranzo's manservant

Storyline

In an amoral home, where a man lives in sin with a woman, his daughter and his son fall in love, and have incestuous relations even after the young woman marrys. Her husband will seek revenge, and a gory end will unite all in classic tragedy - death. (Based on John Ford's play, "Pity she's a whore", respecting its poetic text, and careful Italian Renaissance settings.)

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Plot Keywords:

brother sister incest | female nudity | incest | bare breasts | brother murders sister | 

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Taglines:

John Ford's Classic Tragedy.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

X

Details

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

November 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

'Tis Pity She's a Whore

Filming Locations:

Torrechiara, Langhirano, Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Clesi Cinematografica

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Referenced in Giornata nera (2006)

User Reviews

Stagy trash film, didn't do much for me.

Well, I have to say that 'Tis a Pity She's a Whore wasn't exactly what I was expecting. Given the title, and the fact that it was made in Italy during the 1970's, I was expecting something a lot more sleazy and bloody than this! The film is based on a stage play by John Ford, and this is always obvious as it's all very stagy and the focus seems to be on the performances. This might be a good thing if you were going into the film looking for something 'great' - but I just wanted sleaze! The plot line, however, is about as sleazy as it gets and puts most of its focus on the sick idea of incest. There's a bit of the standard 'arranged marriage' theme thrown in for good measure, and the plot focuses on Annabella; a woman who marries Soranzo after it was decided she would. However, this isn't good news for her brother - a man named Giovanni, as he's also in love with Annabella, and has managed to get her pregnant, despite the fact that she's his sister.

The plot is actually rather good, in that the central theme is interesting. It's the way that its portrayed that was the problem for me, however, as the plot pace isn't very exciting and it seems to take an eternity to get to the point. There's a fair amount of sex in the movie, but it isn't very graphic; so fans of the rough stuff are likely to be disappointed. One of my main reasons for seeing this film was because of the fact that it stars Charlotte Rampling. She might not be as beautiful as some of the other women making trash films around the same time (e.g. Edwige Fenech, Rosalba Neri, Barbara Bouchet), but Rampling is a classy lady who doesn't seem to mind starring in unsavoury movies, which is OK with me. She is joined by Fabio Testi and Oliver Tobias, who apparently was some sort of sex symbol around the time. The film does get more interesting towards the end, when the story opens up and we finally get to see some blood. I'm not saying this is an overall bad film - but the story and the way it's portrayed didn't work very well.