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Showing posts from November, 2020

The Legend of Alberto Sordi - Rome's Eternal Son

′′They will always judge you, whether you behave well or if you behave badly. So screw it and live as you want but above all don't listen to anyone.′′  - Alberto Sordi By giving his fellow Italians something to laugh about during tumultuous times, he emerged as his generation’s King of Comedy. One of Italy’s best-loved personalities, Alberto Sordi played a pivotal role in Italian cinema from the end of World War II to the postwar economic boom of the 1950s. During those tumultuous years, he gave his countrymen a hearty laugh when they might have otherwise cried. Former Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi perhaps said it best: “Alberto Sordi interpreted the feelings of Italians, especially in their most difficult and tough moments.” Born in the Trastevere neighborhood of Rome in 1920, Sordi grew up in a creative household. His mother was an elementary school teacher and his father, a professional musician for the Rome Opera House. A young Sordi joined the children’s choir o

Chiara Mastroianni: The Scion of Screen Legends

Chiara Mastroianni in "Making Plans for Lena" She is the daughter of two cinema legends, but she by no means lives in their shadows. With 56 films to her credit, Chiara Mastroianni has emerged as a versatile contemporary actress who brings heart, soul and infinite talent to every role. Mastroianni was born in Paris in 1972 to Catherine Deneuve and Marcello Mastroianni . She inherited her parents’ stunning looks and penchant for performing, but she has managed to forge her own voice and identity. She has often shared the screen with her parents and such was the case with the role that launched her prolific acting career. I n André Téchiné’s 1993 “Ma saison preferee” (My Favorite Season), Mastroianni is a typical teenager named Anne. As her mother, played by Deneuve, deals with the responsibilities of taking care of an aging parent whose health is rapidly deteriorating, Anne tries to make sense of the chaos around her by forming a bond with her mother’s office assistant. Mastro

The Timeless Cinema of Giovanna Ralli

She rose to fame in the post-war films of the 1950s with her simple yet stunning beauty, quick wit and tough as nails persona. She held her own alongside Italian cinema legends like Vittorio De Sica and Alberto Sordi. Now in her 80s, she talks about the past with sweet nostalgia. Born in Rome on January 2, 1935, Giovanna Ralli wasted no time getting into show business. She made her feature film debut at the age of seven in Vittorio De Sica’s 1942 “I bambini ci guardano” (The Children Are Watching Us). Six years later, she began her theater career, becoming an actress in Peppino De Filippo’s stage company. But it was the big screen where she found her home. A small role in Federico Fellini and Alberto Lattuada's 1950 “Luci del varietà” (Variety Lights), set her film career into motion.    Among her early roles is Marcella in Gianni Franciolini’s 1955 “Racconti Romani” (Roman Tales). In the spirit of the post-war economic boom, the film follows four young men as they carry out sche