Amarcord (1973)

A series of comedic and nostalgic vignettes set in a 1930s Italian coastal town.

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Federico Fellini (story), Tonino Guerra (story)

Stars:

Magali Noël, Bruno Zanin, Pupella Maggio

Won 1 Oscar. Another 18 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pupella Maggio	...	Miranda
Armando Brancia	...	Aurelio
Magali Noël	...	Gradisca (as Magali' Noel)
Ciccio Ingrassia	...	Teo
Nando Orfei	...	Patacca
Luigi Rossi	...	Lawyer
Bruno Zanin	...	Titta
Gianfilippo Carcano	...	Baravelli
Josiane Tanzilli	...	La Volpina
Maria Antonietta Beluzzi	...	Tobacconist
Giuseppe Ianigro	...	Grandpa
Ferruccio Brembilla	...	Fascist
Antonino Faà di Bruno	...	Count (as Antonino Faa' Di Bruno)
Mauro Misul	...	Philosophy Professor
Ferdinando Villella	...	Prof. Fighetta

Storyline

One year in a small northern Italian coastal town in the late 1930s is presented. The slightly off-kilter cast of characters are affected by time and location, the social mores dictated largely by Catholicism and the national fervor surrounding Il Duce aka Benito Mussolini and Fascism. The stories loosely center on a mid-teen named Titta and his household including his adolescent brother, his ever supportive mother who is always defending him against his father, his freeloading maternal Uncle Lallo, and his paternal grandfather who slyly has eyes and hands for the household maid. Other townsfolk include: Gradisca, the town beauty, who can probably have any man she wants, but generally has no one as most think she out of their league; Volpina, the prostitute; Giudizio, the historian; a blind accordionist; and an extremely buxom tobacconist. The several vignettes presented include: the town bonfire in celebration of spring; life at Titta's school with his classmates and teachers; ...

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Plot Keywords:

group of friends | men masturbate together | big breasts | satire | surrealism | 

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Taglines:

The Fantastic World of Fellini!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian Greek, Ancient (to 1453)

Release Date:

19 September 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Amarcord

Filming Locations:

Anzio, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

F.C. Produzioni,PECF

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film is included on Roger Ebert's "Great Movies" list.

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Goofs

The banners promoting the Mille Miglia indicate that it was the seventh event (VII). However, the seventh running of the event was in 1933, and Beau Geste was not released until 1939. The Mille Miglia was not held in 1939.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Miranda: The puffballs.
Aurelio Biondi, Titta's Father: When the puffballs come, cold winter's almost gone.

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Alternate Versions

An exclusive digital restoration of the film was done by Criterion in 1995 for their laserdisc. The disc contains a before-and-after demonstration of the restoration process and has the option of either the original Italian soundtrack or the English-dubbed soundtrack.

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Connections

Referenced in Göta kanal 2 - Kanalkampen (2006)

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Soundtracks

Stormy Weather
(uncredited)
Written by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler
This tune is heard several times during the film.

User Reviews

The best kind of magic...

This film was first recommended to me by a high school friend who typically enjoys a different kind of film than I. He counts Reservoir Dogs and Mean Streets among his favorites; I am partial to Notorious and Annie Hall. But for his sake, I watched Amarcord, and in the past years have found myself returning to it time and again. I haven't seen any other movies by Mr. Fellini, so I can judge this film only against itself. By such standards, it is a masterpiece. Never have I seen Italy portrayed as lovingly, nor the spectrum of childhood emotions - happiness, love, frustration - represented as frankly. The images are spellbinding - sunlight and fog and great dark seas. Yesterdays are perfect, it would seem, and love exists in what we can remember. So my friend got it right with this one. Amarcord is a kind of magic only the very best in cinema inspire within us. It's the magic that makes us remember.