Vincere (2009)

The story of Mussolini's secret lover, Ida Dalser, and their son Albino.

Director:

Marco Bellocchio

Writers:

Marco Bellocchio (story), Marco Bellocchio (screenplay)

Stars:

Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Filippo Timi, Fausto Russo Alesi

47 wins & 40 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Giovanna Mezzogiorno	...	Ida Dalser
Filippo Timi	...	Benito Mussolini / Benito Albino adulto
Fausto Russo Alesi	...	Riccardo Paicher
Michela Cescon	...	Rachele Mussolini
Pier Giorgio Bellocchio	...	Pietro Fedele
Corrado Invernizzi	...	Dottor Cappelletti
Paolo Pierobon	...	Giulio Bernardi
Bruno Cariello	...	Giudice
Francesca Picozza	...	Adelina Dalser
Simona Nobili	...	Madre Superiora
Vanessa Scalera	...	Suora Misericordiosa
Giovanna Mori	...	Tedesca
Patrizia Bettini	...	Cantante
Silvia Ferretti	...	Scarpette rosse
Corinne Castelli	...	Lacrime

Storyline

The story of Ida Dalser, who fell in love with the future Italian Fascist leader, Benito Mussolini, supported him while he was unemployed in the early 1910s, and married him, presumably around 1914. She bore Mussolini a son, Benito Albino, before the outbreak of World War I. The two lost touch during the war years and, upon discovering him again in a hospital during the war, she also discovered Rachele Guidi, who had married Mussolini in 1915, and a daughter born in 1910 when Guidi and Mussolini were living together. Historically, following his political ascendancy, Mussolini suppressed the information about his first marriage and he (through the Fascist party) persecuted both his first wife and oldest son and committed them forcibly to asylums.

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Plot Keywords:

1910s | dictatorship | world war one | cinema | female full frontal nudity | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Unrated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chosen by "Les Cahiers Du Cinéma" (France) as one of the 10 best pictures of 2009 (#02).

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Quotes

Benito Mussolini: With the guts of the last pope, we'll strangle the last king!

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Connections

Features The Warrior (1916)

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Soundtracks

Inno di Garibaldi (Va' fuori d'Italia, va' fuori stranier)
(uncredited)
Performed by Pier Giorgio Bellocchio and Filippo Timi

User Reviews

A decent entry into Palme d'Or selection, but it is by no means stunning.

In competition for 2009's Palme d'Or, Vincere is a new film by Marco Bellocchio. It is set in the early 20th century in Italy, during a dangerous time of oppression and political revolution, which cumulated in the evil that was Fascism. The story is not about the horrors of Fascism per se or how it rose to become an ideology matched in its ghastliness only by Nazism, but of its dictator Benito Mussolini and his private life.

Vincere tells the true story of Mussolini (Filippo Timi) and Ida Dalser (Giovana Mezzogiorno), his secret lover whom he had a passionate but somewhat sordid affair with. In the film, Dalser gives birth to a son who is taken away from her. She is also sent to a mental institution for claiming that she is the "rightful wife" of Mussolini; the latter is married and denies the affair with Dalser.

Much of Vincere revolves around Dalser, whom is portrayed as a sympathetic figure, a person who loved and trusted Mussolini with all her heart, but ended up suffering the ignominy of being a "prisoner of a vile dictator". Mezzogiorno's performance is noteworthy. She switches effortlessly from a seductive woman who oozes sexual allure (she appears completely nude in a number of shots) to a frustrated person devoid of the freedom to pursue personal justice.

Timi also plays Mussolini with a fierce affection. But he fizzles out in the second half of the picture after Bellocchio rightly gives more screen time to Mezzogiorno. Even though the core of Vincere rests upon the relationship (or lack of) between Mussolini and Dalser, the political themes of the film remain in the consciousness of the viewer throughout.

Bellocchio inserts old black-and-white footages of history into the film, drawing our attention to the fervent and violent political and nationalistic attitudes of that era. The shouts of "Italia! Italia!" and the real Mussolini giving a powerful speech about war are, at the very least, disquieting. Matched with a loud, rousing score with lots of brass and choir, the film is quite strong in creating a mood of paranoia.

Vincere somewhat ends too quickly. Even for a film that is slightly longer than two hours, it seems like more exposition is warranted and would have been greeted more positively than not. Thus, the film feels incomplete but it is still a well-made film with its cinematography, in particular, an aspect to appreciate.

It may seem ironic but in Vincere's most emotional sequence, Bellocchio uses clips from Chaplin's The Kid (1921). In The Kid, Chaplin's character is devastated when his young son is taken away from him by the state. Dalser, who watches the film in an open-air screening, draws strength from it in the hope that she will one day see her son again.

Bellocchio's Vincere is a decent entry into the Palme d'Or selection, but it is by no means a stunning piece of cinema. The private story of Mussolini (or rather Dalser's) is compelling enough to last the two hours, though it would have been better received with a more complete approach.

SCORE: 7.5/10 (www.filmnomenon.blogspot.com) All rights reserved!

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan] Official site [United States]

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian German

Release Date:

20 May 2009 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Vincere

Filming Locations:

Trento, Trentino, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$13,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$18,096, 21 March 2010

Gross USA:

$619,162

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$5,701,481

Company Credits

Production Co:

Offside, Rai Cinema, Celluloid Dreams

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min 118 min (cut) 118 min (cut) 118 min (cut) 121 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color Black and White (inserts only)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1