joegagliano-91885

This film belongs to Silvana Mangano. The actress who made her debut in "Bitter Rice" (Riso Amaro) and who made the screen sizzle with her sensuality, gives the performance of a lifetime as the daughter of Benito Mussolini and the wife of his foreign minister, Galeazzo Ciano, played by Frank Wolff. The movie is a factual representation of the events that led to Mussolini's arrest in 1943, something that saw Ciano play a major role within the hierarchy of the fascist party headed by Mussolini. Ciano's famous diaries were a major factor in deciding his fate following "Il processo di Verona" (The Verona Trial), where a number of former fascist gerarchs were tried for treason. History buffs will be familiar with the diaries which were published after the end of the second world war, providing intimate accounts of meetings with both Hitler and Mussolini.

Wolff delivers a solid performance as the count, but Mangano's Countess Edda Ciano is riveting. She is caught between father and husband, finally disillusioned with both, while displaying a range of emotions that do her credit as a serious actress. Director Carlo Lizzani does well to hold the viewer through the two hours, with creative camera work and a number of other devices (newsreels, and machine gun fire in some of the scene transitions). Special credit should go to the writers, Sergio Amidei and Ugo Pirro, for dialog that is convincing in expressing strong emotions.

The story's thread is based upon a policeman's search for the killer of a prostitute in 1943 Italy, but in reality it is a morality tale about war, fascism, partisans, and the other factions participating in the second world war. The policeman and his family portray what happened in Italy during that period, with families torn apart by a civil war where brother against sister was a sad reality. The acting is excellent. Michele Placido is the policeman who does not take sides in the conflict, concentrating instead on his pursuit of a murderer; one might conclude that his fixation on finding the culprit gives him an excuse to avoid choosing a cause. He gives a measured performance as a young man and as the storyteller some twenty years later. His sister Lucia (Alina Nedelea) is fiery as the vengeful fascist recruit who hates the allies responsible for her husband's death in an air raid, while his brother Ettore (Alessandro Preziosi) is well cast as the partisan. Barbara Bobulova is credible as the murdered prostitute and her twin sister

Non-Europeans may find the various personal conflicts somewhat alien, as Europeans may not always appreciate the currents that underlined the American Civil War, but at its most basic level the film does a good job of revealing what each of the characters feels. The fighting is realistic and never overdone. As one who lived in Italy during that era, I was particularly impressed by the scene where fascist snipers were shooting civilians from a church steeple on the last day of hostilities; I witnessed an almost identical scene, except that the church was a synagogue.

Michele Soavi is the talented director.