''The Infamous Column'' ( it, La colonna infame, also known as ''Pillar of Shame'') is a
1973
Events January
* January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 15 – Vietnam War: ...
Italian
historical drama film
A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and sw ...
directed by
Nelo Risi
Nelo (MAR Kayaks Ltda) is a Portuguese company that designs and manufactures kayaks and canoes for racing, touring, fitness, sea racing, paracanoe, surfski, and slalom. It is currently the most successful brand in the sport, attested by the n ...
.
Plot
It is 1630, and a devastating plague has descended upon the city of Milan. Guglielmo Piazza and Giacomo Mora are depicted as two city's artisans (really only Mora, a barber, was an artisan while Piazza was a sanity officer). One day a woman accuses Piazza of being an ''untore'' (i.e. a ''greaser''): a spreader of disease by anointing walls and furnitures with a pestiferous ointment. According to a superstitious belief held by the people, these ''untori'' were in league with the Devil, and were responsible for the spread of the pestilence.
Immediately the Church and the
Inquisition
The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...
scapegoat the two artisans for the outbreak, and subject them to trial by torture, despite the protests of
Cardinal Borromeo.
Innocent victims of a panic which has gripped the populace, Piazza and Mora are found guilty of the imaginary crime of smearing poisonous substances about in the city to induce plague. They are put to death upon the
wheel
A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction with axles, allow heavy objects to be ...
. Afterwards, a pillar (''The Infamous Column'' of the title) is erected in the square which beheld their execution, with a warning for the masses, to guard against eruptions of
public hysteria ever again.
Cast
*
Helmut Berger
Helmut Berger (; born Helmut Steinberger; 29 May 1944) is an Austrian actor, known for his portrayal of narcissistic and sexually-ambiguous characters. He was one of the stars of the European cinema in the late 1960s and 1970s, and is regarded ...
: Arconati
*
Vittorio Caprioli
Vittorio Caprioli (15 August 1921 – 2 October 1989) was an Italian actor, film director and screenwriter. He appeared in 109 films between 1946 and 1990, mostly in French productions.
Biography
Caprioli was born in Naples. Having graduated f ...
: Guglielmo Piazza
*
Francisco Rabal
Francisco Rabal Valera (8 March 1926 – 29 August 2001), better known as Paco Rabal, was a Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter born in Águilas, a town in the south-western part of the province of Murcia, Spain. Throughout his career, Rab ...
: Giacomo Mora
*
Lucia Bosé Lucia may refer to:
Arts and culture
* ''Lucía'', a 1968 Cuban film by Humberto Solás
* ''Lucia'' (film), a 2013 Kannada-language film
* ''Lucia & The Best Boys'', a Scottish indie rock band formerly known as ''LUCIA''
* "Lucia", a Swedish ch ...
: Chiara
*
Salvo Randone
Salvatore "Salvo" Randone (25 September 1906 – 6 March 1991) was an Italian theatrical, television and film actor.
Born in Syracuse, Sicily, Randone debuted on stage in mid-1920s and, after some years in which he played roles of little we ...
: Settala
*
Sergio Tofano
Sergio Tòfano (20 August 1886 – 28 October 1973) was an Italian actor, director, playwright, scene designer and illustrator.
Tofano was born in Rome. In 1909, he made his first appearance on stage with Ermete Novelli, then joined Virgi ...
: President of the Senate
*
Pierluigi Aprà: Senator Monti
*
Annabella Incontrera: Lover of Arcomat
*
Feodor Chaliapin Jr.: Cardinal Federico
*
Ernesto Colli: Judge
*
Martin Balsam
Martin Henry Balsam (November 4, 1919 – February 13, 1996) was an American actor. He had a prolific career in character roles in film, in theatre, and on television. An early member of the Actors Studio, he began his career on the New Y ...
See also
*
List of Italian films of 1972
References
External links
*
1972 films
Films based on works by Alessandro Manzoni
Films directed by Nelo Risi
Films about miscarriage of justice
Films about capital punishment
Italian historical drama films
1970s historical drama films
1972 drama films
1970s Italian films
{{historic-film-stub