Alida Maria Laura, Freiin Altenburger von Marckenstein-Frauenberg, better known by her stage name Alida Valli, was an Italian actress who appeared in more than 100 films in a 70-year career, spanning from the 1930s to the early 2000s. She was one of the biggest stars of Italian film during the Fascist era, once being coined "the most beautiful woman in the world" by Benito Mussolini, but managed to find continued international success post-World War II. According to Frédéric Mitterrand, Valli was the only actress in Europe to equal Marlene Dietrich or Greta Garbo.
Amedeo Nazzari was an Italian actor. Nazzari was one of the leading figures of Italian classic cinema, often considered a local variant of the Australian-American star Errol Flynn. Although he emerged as a star during the Fascist era, Nazzari's popularity continued well into the post-war years.
Invisible Chains is a 1942 Italian drama film directed by Mario Mattoli and starring Alida Valli, Carlo Ninchi and Giuditta Rissone. It was shot at the Cinecittà Studios in Rome. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Ottavio Scotti and Mario Rappini.
Osvaldo Valenti was an Italian film actor. He appeared in more than 50 films between 1928 and 1945. He was born in Istanbul, Turkey to a Sicilian carpet trader and a wealthy Lebanese woman of Greek descent. He and his lover, Luisa Ferida, were executed by partisans in Milan, Italy, due to their links with Fascism. Their story was portrayed in the 2008 film Wild Blood.
The Countess of Parma is a 1937 Italian "white-telephones" comedy film directed by Alessandro Blasetti and starring Elisa Cegani, Antonio Centa and María Denis. Marcella, a mannequin working in a fashion store in Turin, falls in love with an Italian International football player whose aunt has just acquired the store intending to replace its reliance on French fashions with Italian designs. Blasetti later described it as his only "white telephone" film, although his 1939 comedy Backstage has also been noted for its similar characteristics.
The Jester's Supper is a 1942 Italian historical film directed by Alessandro Blasetti and starring Amedeo Nazzari, Osvaldo Valenti and Clara Calamai. It was based on a play of the same title by Sem Benelli, which had later been turned into an opera by Umberto Giordano. Like the play, the film is set in the 15th century Florence of Lorenzo the Magnificent and portrays a rivalry that leads to a series of increasingly violent practical jokes.
Sleeping Beauty is a 1942 Italian drama film directed by Luigi Chiarini and starring Luisa Ferida, Amedeo Nazzari and Osvaldo Valenti. The film was screened at the 1942 Venice Film Festival. It is based on a 1919 play by Pier Maria Rosso di San Secondo. It belongs to the movies of the calligrafismo style.
The Innkeeper is a 1944 Italian historical comedy film directed by Luigi Chiarini and starring Luisa Ferida, Armando Falconi and Osvaldo Valenti. The film is an adaptation of Carlo Goldoni's 1753 play The Mistress of the Inn, one of a number of times the work has been turned into films.
The Secret Lover is a 1941 Italian drama film directed by Carmine Gallone and starring Alida Valli, Fosco Giachetti and Vivi Gioi. It was made at Cinecittà in Rome.
The Two Orphans is a 1942 Italian historical drama film directed by Carmine Gallone and starring Alida Valli, María Denis and Osvaldo Valenti. It was based on the play The Two Orphans by Adolphe d'Ennery and Eugène Cormon, one of many film adaptations. It was made at Cinecittà in Rome.
Short Circuit is a 1943 Italian thriller film directed by Giacomo Gentilomo and starring Vivi Gioi, Umberto Melnati and Guglielmo Barnabò. The film was made at the Pisorno Studios in Tirrenia. It is one of several films considered as a possible precursor to the giallo genre.
It Always Ends That Way is a 1939 Italian musical comedy film directed by Enrique Susini and starring Vittorio De Sica, Nedda Francy and Roberto Rey. The film was based on a novel by Robert Dieudonné. It was shot at the Cinecittà studios in Rome with sets designed by Salvo D'Angelo.
Captain Fracasse is a 1940 Italian historical adventure film directed by Duilio Coletti and starring Elsa De Giorgi, Giorgio Costantini and Osvaldo Valenti. It was made at the Cinecittà studios in Rome. The film is based on the 1863 novel of the same name by Théophile Gautier. Another adaptation Captain Fracasse was made three years later as a co-production between France and Italy.
Two on a Vacation is a 1940 Italian comedy film directed by Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia and starring Vittorio De Sica, María Denis, and Umberto Melnati. It was a remake of the 1932 German film Two in a Car. It was shot at the Cinecittà Studios in Rome.
The Song of Life is a 1945 Italian melodrama film directed by Carmine Gallone and starring Alida Valli, Carlo Ninchi and María Mercader. It is set during the German occupation of Rome in the Second World War before the Liberation of the city in 1944.
The Woman of Monte Carlo is a 1938 Italian "white-telephones" drama film directed by André Berthomieu and Mario Soldati and starring Dita Parlo, Fosco Giachetti and Jules Berry. A separate French version Unknown of Monte Carlo was released the following year.
The House of Shame is a 1938 Italian "white-telephones" comedy film directed by Max Neufeld and starring Amedeo Nazzari, Assia Noris and Alida Valli.
Beyond Love is a 1940 Italian historical drama film directed by Carmine Gallone and starring Alida Valli, Amedeo Nazzari and Osvaldo Valenti. It is based on the 1829 novella Vanina Vanini by Stendhal.
The Mask of Cesare Borgia is a 1941 Italian historical drama film directed by Duilio Coletti and starring Osvaldo Valenti, Elsa De Giorgi and Carlo Tamberlani. Coletti asserted that the 1948 20th Century Fox film Prince of Foxes was a remake of his work, the American studio having bought the rights, although the latter film's source is credited as a novel of the same title by Samuel Shellabarger.
I Want to Live with Letizia is a 1938 Italian "white-telephones" comedy film directed by Camillo Mastrocinque and starring Assia Noris, Gino Cervi and Umberto Melnati.
