Gian Maria Volontè

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In the sixteenth century, Spain occupies Flanders, an Inquisition enforces the faith. Aging writer and philosopher, Zénon Ligre, comes to Bruges using a false name and papers to serve as a physician to the poor, establishing a clinic and steam bath. His methods and opinions are outside the mainstream, but he has the protection and friendship of the local Prior. Zénon, an aristocrat with a degree in canon law, lives humbly. He learns of bacchanals under Masonic signs involving monks and women, and he warns those involved. The Prior is dying, and he urges Zénon to flee to England. Zénon burns his writing. Will he leave or will he face ecclesiastical accusers and, perhaps, the stake?Read More »

As 1973 winds down, Franco is still governing Spain with an iron hand. Opposition parties are forbidden; labor movements are repressed; and Basque nationalists are mercilessly hunted down. The caudillo is aging, though, and the continuity of the régime is in question. One man has the trust of Franco, enough authority and experience to assume the leadership, and an impeccable track record as to dealing with enemies of the State: admiral Carrero Blanco. For the embattled clandestine Basque organization ETA, Carrero Blanco must be brought down. Daring plans are made, requiring a meticulous execution. (IMDb)Read More »

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Monco is a bounty killer chasing El Indio and his gang. During his hunting, he meets Col. Douglas Mortimer, another bounty killer, and they decide to make a partnership, chase the bad guys together and split the reward. During their enterprise, there will be lots of bullets and funny situations. In the end, one of the bounty hunters shows the real intention of his hunting.Read More »

Enrico Mattei had been a powerful and charismatic public figure in Italy in the immediate postwar era. Appointed to wind up the Italian Petroleum Agency, he had instead expanded it and used the new company, ENI, to both explore new sources of energy for Italy and to create a personal power base within the Italian political scene. Machiavellian and idealistic at the same time, Mattei openly used the company’s funds to bribe politicians of all persuasions to support its ventures. An energetic and astute entrepreneur, Mattei resented the big American companies’ control over oil prices and so initiated direct discussions with Russia and with a number of Arab countries in order to procure cheaper oil for Italy and, in the process, a better deal for the producing countries.Read More »

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A country road glimpsed through a dirty windscreen… a mangled car wreck on a garage forecourt…Volonté blowing up an inflatable coat hanger and reminding his assistant that ‘it’s the details that count’. And so they clearly do in Goretta’s film, although quite what they add up to is never sharply defined. A crippled TV journalist (Volonté) arrives in a Swiss village to interview a specialist in world food shortages disillusioned by the non-application of his theories. But he soon becomes embroiled in a web of local intrigue resulting from the death of a young immigrant worker. Goretta counterpoints his two stories with deft assurance, letting them strike subdued ironies off one another; there are thematic strands galore here, clearly signposted but seemingly left deliberately smudged. Yet there is no shortage of delights either: fine atmospherics, immaculately fluid camerawork, and a towering performance from Volonté, sympathy and disdain flickering back and forth across those marvellously expressive features.Read More »

On March 16, 1978, the Red Brigades kidnapped the head of Christian Democracy, the party in power in Italy since the end of the war. Fifty-five days later, his corpse was found in the trunk of a red Renault. Moro was not only the victim of the Brigades but also of the struggle for power between the Italian parties.Read More »

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Fascism has forced the leadership of the Italian Communist Party to settle in Paris. In Italy arrests of militants are decimating the organization, so Emilio is sent on a mission in the area of Turin, to put out of harm whistleblowers.Read More »

Sicilia, late ’60s. Two men are killed during a hunting party. The hurried inquiry indicates that it was a killing made for ‘honor’ reasons. Paolo Laurana is a leftist professor not convinced of the official truth and starts investigating by himself. He finds some help from a solicitor, Mr. Rosello. While investigating, he is fascinated by Luisa, the widow of one of the victims. But the reality is too different from what Laurana could imagine. Reality includes not only the mafia and corrupt politicians, but also Church connections. The reality is that there could be only one end for Laurana. It won’t take long. [IMDb.com]Read More »

A populist right-wing tabloid newspaper tries to derail the official police investigation of a brutal murder of a young girl in order to help the fascist and right-wing candidates it supports in the upcoming elections.

Sbatti il mostro in prima pagina (Italian: “Slam the Monster on the Frontpage”) is a 1972 Italian drama film directed by Marco Bellocchio.Read More »