The Wide Blue Road (1956), Allegro non Troppo (1976), Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo (1966), The Way We Laughed (1998), Cinema Paradiso (1988), My Brother Is an Only Child (2007), The Bicycle Thief (1948), Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion (1970) ... Let's take a look at the ranked list of the best Italian Cinema movies.
Storyline: Caught red-handed for a crime he swears he didn't commit, the hopeful criminal mastermind and--for now--small-time thief, Cosimo, entrusts the square-jawed boxer, Peppe, with the plan for a seemingly fail-proof pawnshop heist on the quiet Madonna Street. However, as the news of this lucrative job spreads like wildfire, instead, it's Cosimo's band of maladroit petty criminals--including a destitute photographer with fatherly obligations--who will take action for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But, will things work as planned?—Nick Riganas
Plot Keywords: comedy, crime, italian cinema, black comedy, heist, classic, farce ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Journalist and man-about-town Marcello struggles to find his place in the world, torn between the allure of Rome's elite social scene and the stifling domesticity offered by his girlfriend, all the while searching for a way to become a serious writer.
Plot Keywords: italian cinema, classic film, 1960s, high society, journalist, celebrity culture, existentialism ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Sad story of a waif, Gelsomina, who is sold by her mother to Zampano for 10,000 lire and a few kilos of food. Zampano is a traveling showman who exhibits feats of strength by breaking a chain wrapped around his chest. He performs in village squares and then passes the hat for whatever the normally small crowd is prepared to give. He teaches Gelsomina a drum roll as part of his introduction. He doesn't treat her well and when she tries to run away, he beats her. They eventually join a small traveling circus where they meet a tight-rope walker who convinces Gelsomina to question her choices.
Plot Keywords: drama, romance, tragedy, italian cinema, circus, underclass, loneliness ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: The life inside a farm in Italy at the end of the 19th century. Many poor country families live there, and the owner pays them by their productivity. One of the families has a very clever child. They decide to send him to school instead of make him help them, although this represents a great sacrifice. The boy has to wake up very early and walk several miles to get to the school. One day the boy's shoes break when returning home, but they do not have money to buy another pair. What can they do?—Michel Rudoy <mdrc@hp9000a1.uam.mx>
Plot Keywords: drama, rural life, italian cinema, poverty, family, faith, tradition ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Edmund, a young boy who lives in war-devastated Germany after the Second World War, must do all kinds of work to help his family get food and survive. One day he meets one of his former teachers and hopes to get support from him, but this man's ideas don't lead Edmund into a clearer or safer way of living.—Hugo <transit@cam.org>
Plot Keywords: child's perspective, struggle for survival, moral dilemma, social criticism, black and white, war trauma, berlin ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Agnese, a 15-year-old Sicilian girl is seduced and impregnated by Peppino, her sister Matilde's fiancé. Soon Vincenzo, Agnese's father, discovers everything. He wants to force Peppino to marry the dishonored Agnese, but Peppino runs away and Vincenzo sends his son Antonio to kill him. At this point, Agnese goes to the police to try to stop events. They're all taken to court. But events can't be stopped, there's still time for a fake kidnapping. A happy end is still possible.—1felco
Plot Keywords: comedy, drama, italian cinema, social satire, family conflict, moral dilemma, gender roles ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: In the suburbs of Rome, the translator Vittoria breaks her engagement with her boyfriend, the writer Ricardo, after a troubled night. Vittoria goes downtown to meet her mother, who is addicted to the stock market, and she meets the broker Piero on a day of crash. The materialist Piero and the absent Vittoria begin a monosyllabic relationship.
Plot Keywords: italian cinema, french cinema, romance, alienation, existentialism, cold war era, black and white ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: A group of rich Italians head out on a yachting trip to a deserted volcanic island in the Mediterranean. When they are about to leave the island, they find Anna, the main character up to this point, has gone missing. Sandro, Anna's boyfriend, and Claudia, Anna's friend, try without success to find her. While looking for the missing friend, Claudia and Sandro develop an attraction for each other. When they get back to land, they continue the search with no success. Sandro and Claudia proceed to become lovers, and all but forget about the missing Anna.
Plot Keywords: drama, romance, mystery, art film, italian cinema, existentialism, psychological ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Pietro (Nanni Moretti), an Italian executive, mourns his wife by sitting outside of his daughter's school all day.
Plot Keywords: drama, family, emotional, grief, healing, midlife crisis, loneliness ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Film director Blasetti is looking for a little girl for his new movie. Along with other mothers, Maddelena takes her daugther to Cinecittà, hoping she'll be selected and become a star. She is ready to sacrifice anything for little Maria, even if her husband would prefer they save their little money for the rent, instead of paying teachers, hairdressers or bribes for her illusions.—Yepok
Plot Keywords: drama, italian cinema, motherhood, talent show, poverty, dreams, social criticism ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: It's sometime during WWII. Italian national, Neapolitan Pasqualino Frafuso, is a big talking layabout who has grand ideas of his importance, especially in upholding the honor of his family consisting of his mother and his less than attractive seven sisters. He admits to himself that he too is less than handsome, but believes he nonetheless attracts the romantic interest of most women. It is in he upholding the honor of his sisters that he often calls himself Pasqualino Settebellezze, translated Pasqualino "Seven Beauties". Having gone AWOL from military service, he has just gotten off a train as a stowaway in an unknown locale having just met another AWOL soldier, Francesco, they believing they somewhere in Germany, which is indeed a correct assumption. In relaying his less than direct "point A to point B" story in how he arrived at this point in time to Francesco, Pasqualino tells one in which every conscious decision was what he thought would be the path of greatest ease for himself in less than ideal circumstances, that path which began with accidentally killing his sister Concettina's pimp and, according to her, lover and fiancé, declaring insanity in the ensuing legal battles rather than going to prison, and choosing military service rather than continue to endure medical intervention, such as shock treatment, at the psychiatric hospital. Pasqualino and Francesco are quickly captured by the Nazis and sent to a POW camp. Having already witnessed mass murders by the Nazis both inside and outside the camp, Pasqualino makes another such "easier path" decision in what ends up being a dangerous campaign of seducing the obese and sadistic female camp commandant.—Huggo
Plot Keywords: war, nazi, concentration camp, survival, moral dilemma, black comedy, italian cinema ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Three stories, all set in Treviso. Various couple experience adultery at a party, a bank clerk abandons his wife for his mistress and all the men in the end are prosecuted for having intercourse with an underage girl.
Plot Keywords: comedy, romance, italian cinema, 1960s, social satire, marriage, sexuality ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Along a rocky, barren coastline, Jesus begins teaching, primarily using parables. He attracts disciples; he's stern, brusque, and demanding. He comes to bring a sword, not peace, he says. He's in a hurry, moving from place to place near the Sea of Galilee, sometimes attracting a multitude, sometimes being driven away. His parables often take on the powers that be, so he and his teachings come to the attention of the Pharisees, the chief priests, and elders. They conspire to have him arrested, beaten, tried, and crucified, just as he prophesied to his followers. After he dies, he appears to his disciples and gives them final instructions.—<jhailey@hotmail.com>
Plot Keywords: religion, bible, italian cinema, black and white, biographical, historical, classic ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Francesca and Walter are two-bit criminals in Northern Italy, and, in an effort to avoid the police, Francesca joins a group of women rice workers. She meets the voluptuous peasant rice worker, Silvana, and the soon-to-be-discharged soldier, Marco. Walter follows her to the rice fields, and the four characters become involved in a complex plot involving robbery, love, and murder.—Laura Ernestina Ruberto <lruberto@ucsd.edu>
Plot Keywords: italian cinema, rural life, class conflict, female protagonist, labor exploitation, social criticism, poverty ...
Movie Details Click Here !Storyline: Adriana, a naive Italian country girl, moves to Rome to become a movie star and experiences the dark side of the business.
Plot Keywords: italian cinema, 1960s, female protagonist, social critique, coming of age, fame and fortune, loneliness ...
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