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 Rome, Open City (Roma città aperta) Released: October 8, 1945 Directed by: Roberto Rossellini Written by: Roberto Rossellini, Sergio Amidei, Federico Fellini Running time: 103 minutes Letterboxd IMDb TMDB Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1P1JRSJT6Q Rome, Open City was written in 1944 and shot in Rome during the last months of the Italian Socialist Republic, also known as the RSI or the Republic of Salò. The RSI was a German puppet state that existed from September 1943 until May 1945. The film follows various Italian citizens as they deal with life under Nazi occupation and focuses on Giorgio Manfredi, a resistance leader who is attempting to flee the city. Aside from the Italian movie stars Anna Magnani and Aldo Fabrizi, the rest of the cast is made up of nonprofessional actors. Despite the conditions in Rome when this film was made it really feels ahead of its time. I had described it before as a movie made ten years later, then sent into the past. Aside from Bicycle Thieves, there’s nothing else I’ve seen from the 40s that I can really compare it to. They’re both Italian neorealist films so this is not necessarily some deep insight on my part. It may be because it’s the only Rossellini film I’ve seen. It’s not his earliest film but it’s what put him on the map, internationally. There are conflicting stories about where Rossellini got the actual film stock for Rome, Open City. An American soldier named Rod E. Geiger may have gotten him access to rolls of film the US Army Signal Corps intended to throw away. There are other accounts in which Rossellini acquired film stock through the black market in Rome. Geiger is credited as a producer though. At the 1946 Canne Film Festival, Rome, Open City won the Palme d’Or. It’s also considered to be the first Italian neorealist film. What I’m saying is that it’s an important piece of cinema. Though it does start a little slowly, it’s also an amazing gripping story. It’s raw and tense and the way it was shot makes it all feel so immediate. I think the good folks of CineD will enjoy it. Rome, Open City is currently streaming on HBO Max and Criterion Channel. It’s also rentable on the usual services. Movie of the Month List      
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Jul 1, 2021 13:56
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| # ? May 6, 2024 11:51 |
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This looks super interesting!
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Jul 1, 2021 16:43
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Rome, Open City was my introduction to Rossellini, and while I've since come to prefer his later, more restrained works, I still think it's a masterpiece, especially considering the conditions under which it was made. It definitely packs a heavy punch. I can't imagine how hard an innocent woman being machinegunned in the back or the priest's execution must have hit contemporary audiences, for whom this kind of violence was by no means a distant memory. One small bit of trivia I've always found interesting is that it was one of the ten highest grossing films of the year when it premiered in the US . Living in an age of Hollywood hegemony, the idea of a foreign production (let alone a low-budget one) having that kind of impact seems almost bizarre. I'm sure the war had a lot to do with it, but it still feels like Americans in the 40s took an interest in other cultures that they no longer seem to possess on a national level.
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Jul 1, 2021 20:14
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I saw this years ago in a Film History class, I shoukd give it a rewatch
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Jul 2, 2021 03:01
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movie good nazis bad
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Jul 9, 2021 00:26
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You chose the only one of Rossellini's "war trilogy" that I haven't seen (the others being Germany Year Zero and Paisan, both of which are great). I need to get on this.
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Jul 10, 2021 05:31
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| # ? May 6, 2024 11:51 |
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I watched this today and was really blown away.
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Jul 31, 2021 01:35
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