It was called the great war
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | It was called the great war |
| Original title | La grande guerra |
| Country of production | Italy , France |
| original language |
Italian German |
| Publishing year | 1959 |
| length | 126 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 16 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Mario Monicelli |
| script |
Luciano Vincenzoni Agenore Incrocci Mario Monicelli Furio Scarpelli |
| production | Dino De Laurentiis |
| music | Nino Rota |
| camera |
Roberto Gerardi Giuseppe Rotunno Leonida Barboni Giuseppe Serrandi |
| cut | Adriana Novelli |
| occupation | |
| |
It was called the great war (original title: La grande guerra ) is an Italian-French war film from 1959.
action
Italy shortly after the outbreak of the First World War . Giovanni Busacca has to enroll in the Italian army to escape prison. He bribes Oreste Jacovacci to give him a respite, but Oreste still doesn't help him. The two men are brought to the front by train in the same car. In an effort to avoid grueling assignments with their brains, they settle their differences.
On the eve of the expected battle, the company withdrew illegally. Giovanni spends the night with the prostitute Constantina, who steals his wallet. The next day, Giovanni takes part in the bloody battle that ends with the capture of Austrian equipment. Giovanni is sent to town with Oreste to get supplies. With some difficulty he can get his wallet back from Constantina. He realizes that he loves the woman. Oreste and Giovanni stay in town to escape the battle that is now also taking place in their camp.
The next morning they find out that their company has been decimated. The residents welcome them, believing that the two survivors of the battle. Giovanni and Oreste decide to desert. But a conversation with the widow of a comrade who fell in the battle leads her to return to the company. They are sent on a special mission as messengers, but they are captured by the Austrians. They want to get information about a makeshift pontoon that the Italians built in order to be able to bring in reinforcements. Giovanni, who knows where the bridge is, does not want to cheat his comrades and is shot. Oreste, who knows nothing about the bridge, is shot while trying to escape hysterically. The Italian commander believes the two men tried again to escape the fighting by fleeing.
Reviews
The lexicon of international film writes that the film is a "large-scale attempt, which does not shy away from coarse means, to rid the image of war and its heroes of all splendor."
Chicago Reader's Pat Graham found the film not entirely satisfactory, although the lack of patriotism caused some controversy.
Awards
The film won the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival .
In 1960 , the film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film .
Also in 1960 he was awarded two silver ribbons by the Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani . One went to Alberto Sordi for best actor, another to Mario Garbuglia for best production design.
In the same year Vittorio Gassman and Alberto Sordi were honored as best actors and the production as best film with the David , the most important Italian film award.
background
The premiere took place in September 1959 at the Venice International Film Festival . The general theatrical release took place on October 28, 1959 in Italy, on May 4, 1960 in France and on August 2, 1960 in Germany.
The film was shot in the Italian provinces of Caserta and Trentino as well as the autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia .
Carlo Salsa, a journalist and writer who took part in the fighting in the area, acted as an advisor to the scriptwriters. The script was based on an idea Luciano Vincenzoni had through a story by Guy de Maupassant .
The mountaineer Achille Compagnoni played a small supporting role. Five years before the filming, he was the first person on the summit of K2 .
Web links
- It was called the Great War in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ It was called the great war. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .
- ↑ Critique of the Chicago Reader