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The power however shifts after World War II, and the ruling class is at the mercy of the jovial and bitter peasants in the town. As padrone, Alfredo is captured by a teenage peasant boy carrying a rifle. Attila is also captured when he and his wife, the equally cruel and sadistic Regina, try to flee the region. Attila is stabbed, non-fatally, several times by women wielding pitchforks and is imprisoned in the Berlinghieri pig sty. He is later executed by the peasants (while they cut off most of Regina's hair), who have discovered that Attila killed a young boy several years prior in a fit of rage and drove a wealthy landowner, Pioppi, to suicide in order to steal his land and home. Regina and Attila had also murdered Pioppi's wife, who had become obsessed with avenging her husband's death.
The power however shifts after World War II, and the ruling class is at the mercy of the jovial and bitter peasants in the town. As padrone, Alfredo is captured by a teenage peasant boy carrying a rifle. Attila is also captured when he and his wife, the equally cruel and sadistic Regina, try to flee the region. Attila is stabbed, non-fatally, several times by women wielding pitchforks and is imprisoned in the Berlinghieri pig sty. He is later executed by the peasants (while they cut off most of Regina's hair), who have discovered that Attila killed a young boy several years prior in a fit of rage and drove a wealthy landowner, Pioppi, to suicide in order to steal his land and home. Regina and Attila had also murdered Pioppi's wife, who had become obsessed with avenging her husband's death.


Alfredo is brought before Olmo's socialist contingent to stand trial. Many workers come forth and accuse Alfredo of letting them suffer in squalor while he (and his social class) profited from their labors. Though Olmo calls for his execution, Alfredo is allowed to live when the Italian partisans arrive and announce the new post-war laws that require all peasants to hand over their firearms until a stable government can be established.
Alfredo is brought before Olmo's socialist contingent to stand trial. Many workers come forth and accuse Alfredo of letting them suffer in squalor while he (and his social class) profited from their labors. He is sentenced to death, but his execution is prevented after Olmo explains that the ''padrone'' is already dead even though Alfredo lives--that is, the social system has been overthrown with the end of the war. As soon as the verdict is reached, however, representatives of the new government, which includes the Communist Party, arrive and call on the peasants to turn in their arms. Olmo convinces the peasants to do so, overcoming their skepticism. Alfredo declares, "The ''padrone'' lives."


==Cast==
==Cast==

Revision as of 18:02, 21 January 2010

"Novecento" redirects here. For the artistic movement of this name, see Novecento Italiano. Not to be confused with the 1998 film, The Legend of 1900.
1900
Movie poster for 1900.
Directed byBernardo Bertolucci
Written byFranco Arcalli
Bernardo Bertolucci
Giuseppe Bertolucci
Produced byAlberto Grimaldi
StarringRobert De Niro
Gérard Depardieu
Dominique Sanda
Donald Sutherland
CinematographyVittorio Storaro
Music byEnnio Morricone
Production
company
Distributed byParamount Pictures (USA)
United Artists (Australia, France)
20th Century Fox (UK)
Release date
August 15, 1976
Running time
Argentina 250 min.
Australia 248 min.
Denmark 302 mins
Italy 311 min.
(Uncut)
USA 245 min.
USA 255 min. VHS Version (Rated)
USA 311 min.
(NC-17)
USA 315 min.
Director's Cut
CountryItaly
LanguagesItalian
English
Budget$9,000,000 (estimated)

1900 (Template:Lang-it, "900") is a Template:Fy Italian epic film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, starring Robert De Niro, Gérard Depardieu, Dominique Sanda, Donald Sutherland, Alida Valli, and Burt Lancaster. Set in Bertolucci's ancestral region of Emilia, the film chronicles the lives of two men during the political turmoils that took place in Italy in the first half of the 20th century. The film was screened at the 1976 Cannes Film Festival, but was not entered into the main competition.[1]

Plot

Born the same day as the turn of the twentieth century, Alfredo Berlinghieri and Olmo Dalcò come from opposite ends of the social spectrum. Alfredo is the son of a rich landowner, while Olmo is an illegitimate peasant son. As Alfredo is somewhat rebellious and despises the falseness of his family, in particular his father, he befriends Olmo, who is brought up as a socialist.

The two are friends throughout their childhood, despite the social differences of their families. Olmo enlists with the Italian army during World War I and goes off to fight while Alfredo learns from his father how to run his family's large plantation. Olmo returns from the war and his friendship with Alfredo continues. However, Alfredo's father has hired Attila Mellanchini as his foreman, a sadistic man who becomes taken with fascism, eventually incorporating his new belief system in his dealings with the Berlinghieri workers; he treats them very cruelly and later cages them in the Berlinghieri compound and accuses them of being traitors to fascist Italy. Several are killed by Attila himself. As the new padrone of the plantation, Alfredo does little to challenge or halt Attila's actions.

The intimacy and lack thereof in their respective relationships with others is highlighted in their love lives. Alfredo marries a gorgeous, demure woman while Olmo marries Anita, who like him shares in the enthusiasm of the cause of workers' rights. Alfredo’s wife, Ada, sinks into alcoholism when confronted with the reality of the emptiness of her relationship with Alfredo. Anita, a strong and independent spirit dies tragically an almost martyr’s death; she dies in childbirth, bringing another member into the community. As Olmo takes on his fateful role of leader among the poor farmers and their families, he clashes with Attila.

The power however shifts after World War II, and the ruling class is at the mercy of the jovial and bitter peasants in the town. As padrone, Alfredo is captured by a teenage peasant boy carrying a rifle. Attila is also captured when he and his wife, the equally cruel and sadistic Regina, try to flee the region. Attila is stabbed, non-fatally, several times by women wielding pitchforks and is imprisoned in the Berlinghieri pig sty. He is later executed by the peasants (while they cut off most of Regina's hair), who have discovered that Attila killed a young boy several years prior in a fit of rage and drove a wealthy landowner, Pioppi, to suicide in order to steal his land and home. Regina and Attila had also murdered Pioppi's wife, who had become obsessed with avenging her husband's death.

Alfredo is brought before Olmo's socialist contingent to stand trial. Many workers come forth and accuse Alfredo of letting them suffer in squalor while he (and his social class) profited from their labors. He is sentenced to death, but his execution is prevented after Olmo explains that the padrone is already dead even though Alfredo lives--that is, the social system has been overthrown with the end of the war. As soon as the verdict is reached, however, representatives of the new government, which includes the Communist Party, arrive and call on the peasants to turn in their arms. Olmo convinces the peasants to do so, overcoming their skepticism. Alfredo declares, "The padrone lives."

Cast

Versions

The original director's cut of the film runs 311 minutes. Alberto Grimaldi, the film's producer, was contractually obligated to deliver a 195-minute version to Paramount Pictures. Bertolucci originally wanted to release the film in two parts, but Grimaldi refused.

Grimaldi then locked Bertolucci out of the editing room, and assembled a 180*minute cut. Bertolucci, horrified at Grimaldi's cut, decided to compromise.[citation needed] His 255-minute version was the one initially released in the United States. In 1987 The Bravo channel broadcast the uncut version with dubbed dialogue. Later in 1991 the film was restored to its original length and shown in a limited release.

When Bertolucci released his 311-minute version to theaters the MPAA re-classified the film with an NC-17 rating; the 245-minute American cut, the other version officially available on video in the U.S., still retained its R rating. In 2006, Paramount surrendered the NC-17 rating of the uncut version, then released it as unrated on DVD on December 5, 2006.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Festival de Cannes: 1900". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved 2009-05-10.

Bibliography

  • di Giovanni, Norman Thomas. Novecento. Milano: Euroclub, 1977 (published in the U.S. and UK as 1900). A novel based on the film. ISBN 0440162033
  • Gerard, Fabien S., T. Jefferson Kline, and Bruce Sklarew, eds. Bernardo Bertolucci Interviews. Jackson, MS: University of Mississippi P, 2000.
  • Kline, T. Jefferson. Bertolucci's Dream Loom: a Psychoanalytical Study in Cinema. Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts P, 1987.
  • Tonetti, Claretta M. Bernardo Bertolucci: the Cinema of Ambiguity. London: Twayne, 1995.
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