''Tis Pity She's a Whore'' ( it, Addio fratello crudele, lit=Goodbye Cruel Brother) is a 1971 film adaptation of

John Ford John Martin Feeney (February 1, 1894 – August 31, 1973), known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. He ...

tragedy Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...

. It is directed by

Giuseppe Patroni Griffi Giuseppe Patroni Griffi (26 February 1921 – 15 December 2005) was an Italian playwright, screenwriter, director, and author. He was born in Naples in an aristocratic family and moved to Rome immediately after the end of World War II and spent ...

, who co-wrote the screenplay, and stars Charlotte Rampling as Annabella,

Oliver Tobias Oliver Tobias Freitag (born 6 August 1947), known professionally as Oliver Tobias, is a Swiss-born UK-based film, stage, and television actor and director. Biography Born in Zürich, Switzerland, he is the son of the Austrian-Swiss actor Robe ...

as Giovanni, and

Fabio Testi Fabio Testi (born 2 August 1941) is an Italian actor. After growing up witnessing film work done around Lake Garda, Testi entered the sets of the film and began work as a stuntman and a double on set, where he worked as a stuntman on ''The Good, ...

as Soranzo. The musical score was composed by Ennio Morricone.

Plot

In the city of

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and '' comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture. In 2017, it was named as the Eur ...

, during the

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...

, Giovanni, the son of a propertied man, is sent to study abroad having never met his sister, Annabella, who is a couple of years younger than him. After ten years of separation, the now beautiful Annabella is reunited with her brother for the first time, as adolescents. The young siblings are immediately attracted and cannot help falling in love with each other. After struggling with their feelings for some time Giovanni and Annabella begin a secret relationship, and she becomes pregnant. Knowing that the world will condemn them, Giovanni leaves his father's villa, and Annabella accepts the marriage proposal of her suitor, the wealthy noble Soranzo. After Soranzo discovers that he has been the object of a deception, he makes plans for a bloody vengeance.

Cast

Reception

Italian film critic Marco Giusti writes that Rampling undresses as much as she can, but that it is Fabio Testi's physique that is imposing: Always naked and often framed at the height of his buttocks, it is causing the spectators some embarrassment. Giusti perfectly remembers the sight of Testi's big hairy buttocks on the screen of the cinema Verdi in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...

. However, Teo Mora "forced" Giusti and Enrico Ghezzi to stage it at the Teatro dell'Archivolto in Genoa. Giusti acted as Soranzo, Testi's character; he has not done any theatre since.

Accolades

The film received two Nastro d'Argento Award nominations; Best Cinematography (

Vittorio Storaro Vittorio Storaro, A.S.C., A.I.C. (born 24 June 1940) is an Italian cinematographer widely recognized as one of the best and most influential in cinema history, for his work on numerous classic films including '' The Conformist,'' '' Apocalypse No ...

) and Best Production Design ( Mario Ceroli).

Bibliography

References

External links

* * 1971 films 1971 romantic drama films Italian romantic drama films Films directed by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi Films scored by Ennio Morricone Incest in film Italian films based on plays 1970s historical drama films French romantic drama films 1970s Italian films 1970s French films {{romantic-drama-film-stub