A special day
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | A special day |
| Original title | Una giornata particolare |
| Country of production |
Italy Canada |
| original language | Italian |
| Publishing year | 1977 |
| length | 105 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Ettore Scola |
| script |
Ruggero Maccari , Maurizio Costanzo , Ettore Scola |
| production | Carlo Ponti |
| music | Armando Trovajoli |
| camera | Pasqualino De Santis |
| cut | Raimondo Crociani |
| occupation | |
| |
A special day is an Italian-Canadian drama by director Ettore Scola from 1977 with Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni in the lead roles.
action
The film is set in the Italian capital Rome . It is May 6, 1938, the day on which a large parade in honor of Adolf Hitler and the Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini takes place during Hitler's state visit to Rome from May 3 to 9, 1938 . The married couple Emanuele and Antonietta live in an apartment complex with their six children. Emanuele, who is a supporter of the fascists like his wife, goes into town with the children to attend the parade. Antonietta stays at home to do the housework; her beloved Beo flies away . Antonietta notices that a man is sitting in the apartment opposite, in front of which the bird has settled, and rings the bell. Gabriele - who was about to put a bullet in the head - helps Antonietta recapture the Beo.
Lonely as she is, Antonietta begins to flirt with Gabriele. Gabriele is a broadcaster, but was fired. Antonietta learns from the caretaker that Gabriele has been kicked out of the door by the radio because he is not a staunch fascist. The naive and superficial woman is shocked when Gabriele confesses to her that he is homosexual, but is then ashamed of the slap she gave him. She goes to him to apologize and they love each other. “As a homosexual you can love a woman,” says Gabriele, “but that doesn't change anything.” His sexual orientation is the reason for his dismissal. His best friend has already been deported to Sardinia . Antonietta wants to see Gabriele again, but he is picked up by the police after Emanuele has returned with the children.
The martial radio commentary, the repeated Horst Wessel song , “ Giovinezza ” and the national anthems, all off-screen, give the film a refined double bottom; as if casually it exposes the hollowness and mendacity of the fascist system.
Reviews
The Lexicon of International Films described the film as "one of the most independent and artistically convincing Italian films of the 1970s."
The film magazine Cinema also praised the film as a "convincingly cast game of soft tones."
Vincent Canby of the New York Times described the Loren and Mastroianni acting tour de force as funny and people-friendly.
Awards
- Prices
- Globo d'Oro for Marcello Mastroianni (best actor), Sophia Loren (best actress) and Ettore Scola (best film)
- Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film , plus a nomination for Marcello Mastroianni for Best Actor in a Drama
- David di Donatello for Ettore Scola and Sophia Loren
- César as best foreign film
- Nastro d'Argento for Best Actress , Best Music and Best Screenplay
- Nominations
- Oscars in the categories of Best Foreign Language Film and Best Actor (Mastroianni)
- Palme d'Or at the Cannes International Film Festival
background
The premiere took place on May 17, 1977 at the Cannes International Film Festival . In Germany, the film was shown for the first time on May 22, 1979 as part of a TV premiere on the ZDF channel .
Alessandra Mussolini , granddaughter of the fascist leader and niece of Sophia Loren, can be seen in the role of daughter Maria Luisa.
Web links
- A special day in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ A special day in the Lexicon of International Films , accessed on April 14, 2012
- ↑ Critique of Cinema
- ↑ Review of the New York Times (English)