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Friday, January 20, 2012
Antonio Pietrangeli
Would you put Antonio Pietrangeli amongst the elite Italian directors like Fellini, Pasolini, and Antonioni. Yes or no?
I am not very familiar with his work, but from what i read ... i really should check out "La visita" and "Io la conoscevo bene". So i am looking very forward to your dvd release of "La visita".
Hi Jay, Here is an extract from the booklet included in the upcoming DVD publication of La Visita. I hope you find it interesting. “For many years, Roman-born director Antonio Pietrangeli was not given full dues by either Italian or foreign critics. Indeed, his films were often misunderstood and his reviews negative. It was not until 1968, twenty years after his death, that his work was published in Italy1, while many French film lovers and critics, even those of the caliber and fame of Antoine de Baecque and Jean-Baptiste Thoret, directors of the Arts and Culture Office of “Libération”, to name just a couple, have still never heard of him. Moreover, a quick leaf through the famous “Cahiers” of the 1950s and 1960s shows that his films were never reviewed and that their release in the cinemas of Paris was often merely accompanied by a few derogatory lines about the “over-commerciality” and the pointlessness of his film output. Yet Pietrangeli had a limpid and very lucid view of the world which, although it embraced the inheritance bequeathed by Italian Neorealism, could not be categorized into one of the dominating trends of the Italian film industry of the time. With films such as Empty Eyes (1953), March’s Child (1958), Adua and Her Friends (1960) and the three masterful female character studies The Girl from Parma (1963), The Visitor (1963) and I Knew Her Well (1965), Pietrangeli depicted an increasingly bitter, disenchanted world in films whose narrative style and rhythm were extremely innovative and modern. A film output which any watchful critic would have considered worthy of inclusion alongside the films of Michelangelo Antonioni and Valerio Zurlini. Based on a story by Ruggero Maccari and Ettore Scola, The Visitor was originally to be directed by Giuseppe De Santis, who had to back down due to previous commitments regarding Attack and Retreat. The producer Moris Ergas thus approached Antonio Pietrangeli, who accepted the offer and joined Maccari and Scola in the writing of the screenplay. At first glance, The Visitor’s bitter, disillusioned point of view, everyday setting and brutal use of comedy seems to make it an almost perfect example of the traditional commedia all’italiana genre. Yet this great “container genre” has very flexible features and the narrative structure of The Visitor seems to be heading in another direction, a direction which Pietrangeli would pursue to a greater extent in his magnificent I Knew Her Well. The whole story takes place within a span of just 24 hours, focuses on very few characters (mainly Pina and Adolfo) and explores very few locations (mainly Pina’s home). The two protagonists are introduced as the story unfolds and it is gradually revealed that Pina is tender, generous, down to earth, well liked by everyone in the village, independent and lonely. She is also involved in a relationship with a lorry driver, Renato, a married man whom she only sees when his work brings him into her area. Adolfo is a much darker character, a mean, selfish, vulgar, lazy, man of crafty, petty, diffident, unsociable and calculating ways. The film is divided into three acts: a prologue in which Pina picks up her guest at the station and shows him around her house and garden; a development section during which Pina and Adolfo reveal their true natures, study each other carefully and discover the huge cultural divide which separates them; and a conclusion in which Adolfo confesses the errors of his ways after a night of love and departs, leaving everything just as it was before. This seemingly classical narrative structure is, however, interspersed with five flashbacks focusing on Pina’s loneliness, Adolfo’s mundane life, Pina’s life at work, Adolfo’s relationship with Nella, the seamstress, and Pina’s relationship with Renato. Thus in some ways the film is a kind of puzzle.”
Glad it was helpful. Many of our publications come with an additional booklet with film criticism and/or history on the film or director. La Visita comes with a Bonus Rom digital booklet which has has some additional insights on Pietrangeli.
I am not very familiar with his work, but from what i read ... i really should check out "La visita" and "Io la conoscevo bene". So i am looking very forward to your dvd release of "La visita".
ReplyDeleteHi Jay,
ReplyDeleteHere is an extract from the booklet included in the upcoming DVD publication of La Visita.
I hope you find it interesting.
“For many years, Roman-born director Antonio Pietrangeli was not
given full dues by either Italian or foreign critics. Indeed, his films
were often misunderstood and his reviews negative. It was not until
1968, twenty years after his death, that his work was published in
Italy1, while many French film lovers and critics, even those of the
caliber and fame of Antoine de Baecque and Jean-Baptiste Thoret,
directors of the Arts and Culture Office of “Libération”, to name
just a couple, have still never heard of him. Moreover, a quick leaf
through the famous “Cahiers” of the 1950s and 1960s shows that
his films were never reviewed and that their release in the cinemas
of Paris was often merely accompanied by a few derogatory lines
about the “over-commerciality” and the pointlessness of his film
output. Yet Pietrangeli had a limpid and very lucid view of the world
which, although it embraced the inheritance bequeathed by Italian
Neorealism, could not be categorized into one of the dominating trends
of the Italian film industry of the time. With films such as Empty Eyes
(1953), March’s Child (1958), Adua and Her Friends (1960) and the
three masterful female character studies The Girl from Parma (1963),
The Visitor (1963) and I Knew Her Well (1965), Pietrangeli depicted
an increasingly bitter, disenchanted world in films whose narrative
style and rhythm were extremely innovative and modern. A film output
which any watchful critic would have considered worthy of inclusion
alongside the films of Michelangelo Antonioni and Valerio Zurlini.
Based on a story by Ruggero Maccari and Ettore Scola, The Visitor
was originally to be directed by Giuseppe De Santis, who had to back
down due to previous commitments regarding Attack and Retreat.
The producer Moris Ergas thus approached Antonio Pietrangeli, who
accepted the offer and joined Maccari and Scola in the writing of the
screenplay. At first glance, The Visitor’s bitter, disillusioned point of
view, everyday setting and brutal use of comedy seems to make it
an almost perfect example of the traditional commedia all’italiana
genre. Yet this great “container genre” has very flexible features and
the narrative structure of The Visitor seems to be heading in another
direction, a direction which Pietrangeli would pursue to a greater
extent in his magnificent I Knew Her Well.
The whole story takes place within a span of just 24 hours, focuses on
very few characters (mainly Pina and Adolfo) and explores very few
locations (mainly Pina’s home). The two protagonists are introduced
as the story unfolds and it is gradually revealed that Pina is tender,
generous, down to earth, well liked by everyone in the village,
independent and lonely. She is also involved in a relationship with a
lorry driver, Renato, a married man whom she only sees when his
work brings him into her area. Adolfo is a much darker character, a
mean, selfish, vulgar, lazy, man of crafty, petty, diffident, unsociable
and calculating ways. The film is divided into three acts: a prologue
in which Pina picks up her guest at the station and shows him
around her house and garden; a development section during which
Pina and Adolfo reveal their true natures, study each other carefully
and discover the huge cultural divide which separates them; and a
conclusion in which Adolfo confesses the errors of his ways after a
night of love and departs, leaving everything just as it was before. This
seemingly classical narrative structure is, however, interspersed with
five flashbacks focusing on Pina’s loneliness, Adolfo’s mundane life,
Pina’s life at work, Adolfo’s relationship with Nella, the seamstress,
and Pina’s relationship with Renato. Thus in some ways the film is
a kind of puzzle.”
Great read, thank you very much, gonna get the "la visita" dvd as soon as it comes out :)
ReplyDeleteGlad it was helpful. Many of our publications come with an additional booklet with film criticism and/or history on the film or director. La Visita comes with a Bonus Rom digital booklet which has has some additional insights on Pietrangeli.
Delete