The Assassin (1961 film)

Last updated

The Assassin
The Assassin (1961 film).jpg
Directed by Elio Petri
Screenplay by
Story by
  • Tonino Guerra
  • Elio Petri
Produced by Franco Cristaldi
Starring Marcello Mastroianni
Cinematography Carlo Di Palma
Edited by Ruggero Mastroianni
Music by Piero Piccioni
Production
companies
  • Titanus
  • Vides Cinematografica
  • Société Générale de Cinématographie [1]
Distributed byTitanus (Italy)
Release dates
  • 1 April 1961 (1961-04-01)(Italy) [2]
  • July 1964 (1964-07)(France) [2]
Running time
106 minutes
CountryItaly
LanguageItalian

The Assassin (Italian : L'assassino) is a 1961 Italian-French crime drama film directed by Elio Petri starring Marcello Mastroianni. [1] [2] [3] It was Petri's feature film debut as a director.

Contents

Plot

Antiques dealer Alfredo returns to his exclusive apartment in Rome in the early morning hours. When his fiancée Nicoletta rings him up on the phone, he pretends that he had spent the whole night at home. Shortly after, the police arrive and arrest Alfredo, as his former mistress Adalgisa, with whom he had spent the previous night, has been found murdered in her hotel at the seaside. Also, Nicoletta has suddenly disappeared. While Alfredo is in custody, the police research his past and uncover an egotistical, ruthless careerist who uses the people around him to climb the social ladder at any cost, selling fake antiques, having his mistress pay for his expenses and dropping her at the prospect of marrying Nicoletta, the daughter of a rich industrialist. When Nicoletta shows up again and the true murderer is convicted, Alfredo is released. Showing remorse for his past behaviour at first, Alfredo soon returns to his previous ways.

Cast

Release

The Assassin was released in Italy on 1 April 1961, distributed by Titanus. [2] It was shown in competition at the 11th Berlin International Film Festival June–July the same year and released in France in July 1964. [2]

Legacy

The film was restored in 2011 by the Cineteca di Bologna. [3] The restored version was screened at the same year's 64th Cannes Film Festival in the "Cannes Classics" section. [4]

Awards

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcello Mastroianni</span> Italian actor (1924–1996)

Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni was an Italian film actor and one of the country's most iconic male performers of the 20th century. He played leading roles for many of Italy's top directors in a career spanning 147 films between 1939 and 1996, and garnered many international honours including two BAFTA Awards, two Best Actor awards at the Venice and Cannes film festivals, two Golden Globes, and three Academy Award nominations.

<i>Divorce Italian Style</i> 1961 Italian film

Divorce Italian Style is a 1961 Italian black comedy film directed by Pietro Germi. The screenplay is by Germi, Ennio De Concini, Alfredo Giannetti, and Agenore Incrocci, based on Giovanni Arpino's novel Un delitto d'onore. It stars Marcello Mastroianni, Daniela Rocca, Stefania Sandrelli, Lando Buzzanca, and Leopoldo Trieste.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elio Petri</span> Italian filmmaker (1929–1982)

Eraclio Petri, commonly known as Elio Petri, was an Italian film and theatre director, screenwriter and film critic. The Museum of Modern Art described him as "one of the preeminent political and social satirists of 1960s and early 1970s Italian cinema". His film Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion won the 1971 Academy Award for Best Foreign-Language Film, and his subsequent film The Working Class Goes to Heaven received the Palme d'Or at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gabriele Ferzetti</span> Italian actor

Gabriele Ferzetti was an Italian actor with more than 160 credits across film, television, and stage. His career was at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s.

<i>The Working Class Goes to Heaven</i> 1971 Italian film

The Working Class Goes to Heaven, released in the US as Lulu the Tool, is a 1971 Italian satirical political drama film directed by Elio Petri. It depicts a factory worker's realisation of his own condition as a simple tool in the process of production. The film was awarded the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film at the 25th Cannes Film Festival, sharing it with Francesco Rosi's The Mattei Affair.

<i>The 10th Victim</i> 1965 film

The 10th Victim is a 1965 science fiction film directed and co-written by Elio Petri, starring Marcello Mastroianni, Ursula Andress, Elsa Martinelli, and Salvo Randone. An international co-production between Italy and France, it is based on Robert Sheckley's 1953 short story "Seventh Victim".

<i>Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion</i> 1970 Italian crime drama film

Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion is a 1970 Italian crime thriller film directed by Elio Petri, starring Gian Maria Volonté and Florinda Bolkan. It is a psychological, black-humored satire on corruption in high office, telling the story of a top police officer who kills his mistress, and then tests whether the police would charge him for this crime. He begins manipulating the investigation by planting obvious clues while the other police officers ignore them, either intentionally or not.

<i>Family Diary</i> 1962 Italian film

Family Diary is a 1962 Italian film directed by Valerio Zurlini and based on the novel by Vasco Pratolini. It tells the story of two brothers who are brought up separated from each other after their mother's death. The two were reunited after a difficult family circumstances.

<i>The Pizza Triangle</i> 1970 Italian film

The Pizza Triangle is a 1970 Italian commedia all'italiana film directed by Ettore Scola and written by Scola and the famous screenwriter duo of Age & Scarpelli. It stars Marcello Mastroianni, Monica Vitti, Giancarlo Giannini. It was coproduced with Spain and Spanish actors Manuel Zarzo and Juan Diego are dubbed into Italian. The film is available on DVD in Germany, released by WB as Eifersucht auf italienisch, and in Italy.

<i>Splendor</i> (1989 film) Italian film

Splendor is a 1989 Italian drama film directed by Ettore Scola.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1997 Cannes Film Festival</span> Awards gathering for films

The 50th Cannes Film Festival was held from 7 to 18 May 1997. The Palme d'Or was jointly awarded to Ta'm e guilass by Abbas Kiarostami and Unagi by Shohei Imamura. Jeanne Moreau was the mistress of ceremonies.

<i>Chronicle of Poor Lovers</i> 1954 film

Chronicle of Poor Lovers is a 1954 Italian drama film directed by Carlo Lizzani. It competed for the Grand Prix at the 1954 Cannes Film Festival.

<i>We Still Kill the Old Way</i> (1967 film) 1967 Italian film

We Still Kill the Old Way is a 1967 Italian crime film directed by Elio Petri. It is based on the novel To Each His Own by Leonardo Sciascia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salvo Randone</span> Italian actor (1906–1991)

Salvatore Randone, known professionally as Salvo Randone, was an Italian stage, film and television actor.

<i>Me, Me, Me... and the Others</i> 1966 film

Me, Me, Me... and the Others is a 1966 Italian comedy film directed by Alessandro Blasetti. For this film Blasetti won the David di Donatello for best director.

<i>The Protagonists</i> (1968 film) 1968 film

The Protagonists is a 1968 Italian drama film directed by Marcello Fondato. It was listed to compete at the 1968 Cannes Film Festival, but the festival was cancelled due to the events of May 1968 in France.

<i>Property Is No Longer a Theft</i> 1973 Italian–French film

Property Is No Longer a Theft is a 1973 Italian-French comedy drama film directed by Elio Petri.

<i>His Days Are Numbered</i> 1962 Italian film

His Days Are Numbered, also titled Numbered Days, is a 1962 Italian drama film directed by Elio Petri.

<i>Marcello Mio</i> 2024 film by Christophe Honoré

Marcello Mio is a 2024 French-Italian comedy film written and directed by Christophe Honoré. In the film, actress Chiara Mastroianni confronts living in the shadow of her real-life father Marcello Mastroianni's legacy. She portrays a version of herself alongside her real-life mother, French actress Catherine Deneuve. Several other actors support the cast and play versions of themselves as well, including Fabrice Luchini, Nicole Garcia, Benjamin Biolay, Melvil Poupaud and Hugh Skinner.

References

  1. 1 2 "L'assassino". Ciné-Ressources (in French). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Curti, Roberto (2021). Eltio Petri: Investigation of a Filmmaker. McFarland. ISBN   9781476680347.
  3. 1 2 3 "L'assassino". Cinematografo (in Italian). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
  4. ↑ "L'assassino". Festival de Cannes. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.