''Malamore'' is a 1982 Italian

melodrama film In film studies and criticism, melodrama may variously refer to a genre, mode, style or sensibility characterized by its emphasis on intense and exaggerated emotions and heightened dramatic situations. There is no fixed definition of the term an ...

co-written and directed by

Eriprando Visconti Eriprando Visconti di Modrone, Visconti di Vimodrone, Modrone, Count of Vico Modrone (September 24, 1932 – May 26, 1995) was an Italian people, Italian film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was the nephew of the more famous Luchino ...

and starring Nathalie Nell and Jimmy Briscoe. It was Visconti's last film. It premiered at the 39th edition of the

Venice International Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...

in the De Sica section.Corrado Colombo (2004). "Eriprando Visconti: Lo sguardo negato". ''Controcorrente: il cinema milanese di Eriprando Visconti, Cesare Canevari, Alberto Cavallone''. Nocturno Dossier (19). pp. 8, 24.

Plot

Friuli, autumn of 1917. The dwarf Marcello Giammarco, the only son of a wealthy lawyer, is held by his father confined in a majestic country villa near Palmanova. The villa is located in the Italian rear of the front and has been partially converted into a military hospital. In this unreal atmosphere, between servants and dying, which precedes the defeat of Caporetto, the courteous and dignified Marcello tries to lead a normal existence, pursuing the sentimental dream of bonding with Maria, a prostitute of the local brothel. The death of his father, accidentally hit by an artillery shell during the capture of Palmanova, invests Marcello with responsibility for the great family heritage, while his villa, where he continues to live, becomes the seat of an Austrian rear command. Even the brothel changes customs and customers: now all Austrian soldiers. In those moments of extreme social and moral uncertainty, Marcello's rich patrimony becomes a possible target and a hope of revenge for some neglected, maneuvered by a shrewd profiteer, from whom the war seems to have taken away any future and any ethical sense.

Cast

* Jimmy Briscoe as Marcello Giammarco * Nathalie Nell as Maria * Antonio Marsina as Cesare *

Remo Girone Remo Girone (born 1 December 1948) is an Italian film and stage actor. He is best known for the role of Tano Cariddi in the epic TV mini-series '' La piovra'' (''The Octopus''). He appeared as an Italian-American mob boss in '' Live by Night'' a ...

as The Monk * Elisabeth Kaza as Leni Grundt * Leopoldo Trieste as The Administrator * Leonardo Treviglio as Amilcare * David Brandon as Major Banfield (credited as David Aughton) * Cesare Barbetti * Monica Scattini as Sonia *

Serena Grandi Serena Faggioli (Bologna, 23 March 1958), known professionally as Serena Grandi, is an Italian actress, famous as a sex symbol in Cinema of Italy, Italian cinema of the 1980s and 1990s. She was a popular pin-up model in Italy. During her film car ...

as A Prostitute * Cinzia Cavalieri as Alma * Fiorella Molinari as Flora * Maurizio Donadoni * Ettore Geri

Production

The film was mainly funded by the director Eriprando Visconti. The first choice for the Maria's role was

Giuliana De Sio Giuliana De Sio (born 2 April 1957) is an Italian actress, the younger sister of pop music, pop-Folk music, folk singer Teresa De Sio. She won two David di Donatello for Best Actress and a Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress. Biography and career ...

, but the distributors rejected the idea because at the time they considered De Sio just as a television actress.

Edwige Fenech Edwige Fenech (, ; born 24 December 1948) is a French-Italian actress and film producer. She is mostly known as the star of a series of ''commedia sexy all'italiana'' and ''giallo'' films released predominantly through her 20 year career in the ...

was also offered the role but refused.

Reception

The film was both a critical and commercial failure.

References

External links