Discoveries from Italy World Cinema

Ghosts and dead bodies infest a small nineteenth-century village.

Maciste arranges for himself and his new friend Bangor to be captured by a mysterious band of white-clad marauders and taken to an underground city. There the two are forced to turn an enormous wheel along with other captives as part of a gold-and-diamonds mining operation. The underground city's queen, Halis Mosab, takes note of the handsome, muscular Maciste and chooses him to be her consort if he can meet such challenges as saving the kidnapped Princess Saliura from a gigantic ape. Maciste kills the ape and carries Saliura back to the aboveground world. The white-clad marauders can't follow them if it means being caught in the sunlight which instantly dissolves them. Maciste then returns to the underground city to save the other captives. Meanwhile, high priest Kahab informs his son, Katar, that their queen is not one of them but, unbeknownst to her, was kidnapped as a small child from the "world above." If Katar can marry her...

In Pietro Mascagni's tragic opera, a soldier returns home from war to reclaim his former fiancée, only to find that she's married someone else in his absence, leading to jealousy, betrayal, and murder.

Behind the facade of a fashionable Milanese home, headed by Arabella, lies an efficient ring of high prostitution.

The memory of Piero Portaluppi, a Milanese architect who reached the peak of his fame during the 20 years of the Fascist regime, comes back to life, both through the rediscovery of his work today and in a previously unpublished film diary in 16 mm, shot and edited throughout his lifetime. A man of great charm and power, Portaluppi lived through a grandiose but tragic era with ironic detachment, as if dancing across things as he created beauty. History marches on implacably, radically transforming the arena in which the eclectic artist and his large family lived and worked.

Two nuns come to Rome to protest to an airline about its jet planes which have been flying over their convent school, disrupting teaching of the little orphans who study there and damaging the ancient fresco of their patron saint through sound vibrations.

A pair of working class lovers - a secretary and an accountant, scheme to marry into the rich landed gentry.

One night Leonardo, a young concierge working in a suburban hotel, receives a visit from a mysterious couple looking for a place to stay. The boy will soon discover that love can hide a dark side.

A couple on holiday in Haiti become involved in a series of savage murders linked to a doctors a new invention, a drug with extreme side effects.

Guido, an acclaimed writer, leads a seemingly perfect life with his wife and daughter, but his restless search for inspiration leads him into the arms of Giulia, a charming and mysterious swim instructor who's hiding a secret.

Historical drama, based upon the novel by Alessandro Manzoni.

The czar Nicolas sends a secret mission of experts to find a hidden treasure, while at the same time preparing a group of mercenaries to kill the experts after their return.

Steel giant Thyssen Krupp in Germany and cargo ship operator Maersk in Denmark are investing huge sums of money with public support to convert their huge and dirty energy consumption to ‘green’. Hydrogen plays a central role in this. At the same time, countries in Africa such as Morocco and Namibia are gearing up to become giga-suppliers of the new energy source. But does it all make sense? Why not just produce green steel in Africa? And what's the story behind the blue hydrogen that is supposed to come from Norway via pipeline? The film follows pioneers on breathtaking projects and shows that the energy transition is more complicated than expected and holds many surprises in store.

A war hero turned unemployed is hired by a British man whose life he saved during the war, for a secret mission: to kill a neo-nazi.

A mental hospital somewhere in Tuscany during the thirties. Far away from fascism, this closed world is rules over by Dr. Bonaccorsi, a passionate benevolent psychiatrist whose dream is to isolate the germ of madness. He is also a very active ladies'man and makes three women benefit from his sexual itch: Francesca the hospital manager's wife, Bianca, his devoted nurse and Carla, a nymphomaniac doctor's wife. His well-ordered universe starts being challenged with the coming of Anna, a trainee psychiatrist, who disapproves of his theory on the origin of madness. Worse, she resists his advances. As Bonaccorsi is more insecure than he looks, what will become of him?

Summer Late sixties, Want to sing, Of Sun. Of golden skin from tanning. Of endless beaches. And relaxing baths. For everyone: young and old. Singles and couples. In the endless consumption of flirtation and new knowledge, the musical background goes crazy with the famous screamer. Famous personalities like Lola Falana emerge from famous people. They get confused. They are inserted between these alleged stars. But above all, they have fun like crazy ...

A young psychiatrist struggles to remove an erratic captain from command at an Italian base in the Lybian desert during World War II.

The story follows Joanna, a striking forty-year-old woman trapped in a stifling marriage to a wealthy and controlling man. When she meets Ada, an enigmatic and free-spirited young woman, Joanna is drawn into a journey of self-discovery and rebellion. As their bond deepens, Joanna begins to break free from the life that has imprisoned her but liberation comes at a price she never anticipated.

1918. As the roar of the First World War cannons is dying out, in Vienna, the heart of Central Europe, a golden age comes to an end. The Austro-Hungarian Empire is beginning to disintegrate. On the night of October 31st, in the bed of his home, Egon Schiele dies, one of the 20 million deaths caused by the Spanish flu. He dies looking at the invisible evil in the face, in the only he can do: painting it. He is 28 years old. Only a few months earlier, the main hall of the Secession building had welcomed his works: 19 oil paintings and 29 drawings. His first successful exhibition, a celebration of a new painting idea that portrays the restlessness and desires of mankind.A few months earlier, his teacher and friend Gustav Klimt had died. From the turn of the century, he had fundamentally changed the feeling of art and founded a new group: the Secession.

After being raped by her father, Ingrid moves to Rome and ends up becoming a prostitute. She finds a friend in Claudia, but Claudia's protector is a sadistic thug by the name of Renato who will show her the worst of the what life in the city has to offer.

A western comedy starring the Sicilian comedians Franco and Ciccio who produced dozens of such spoofs in the 1960s. This time, they quote mainly "The Good, the Bad And the Ugly". Ciccio is sergeant in the army and Franco volunteers to join (after too many drinks). Franco has a talking horse telling him where a treasure is buried. They have to get behind enemy lines in the civil war to get hold of it, though.

Three Italian soldiers volunteer to go to Kosovo after the war, where they risk their lives to help a young girl.

Little Maurice Dumont lives with his mother in a village in the mountains. His twin brother Jacques died at birth. But Maurice told that he could speak with Jacques. The doctor, Dr. Prevost and her husband, who teaches at the local school, are of the opinion that his mother's strict upbringing is not good for Maurice. One day, they discover strange injuries on him. At the same time some women of the village plan to use Maurice's ability to communicate with the dead to contact their dead relatives. But this is not a good idea ...

A documentary about the historic film producer, the first woman to make her mark in a predominantly male environment. A key figure in the great season of Italian auteur cinema between the late 1960s and the 1970s, Marina Cicogna worked with great directors and actors, winning an Oscar with "Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion" by Elio Petri and a Golden Lion with "Belle de Jour" by Luis Buñuel in Venice.

At the beginning of the century, in Italy, a wealthy woman Francesca (Loren), adopts a poor little girl named Nunziata. The years pass, Nunziata falls in love Federico (Bova), her adoptive brother, son of Francesca.

A trilogy of comedic tales set in the Middle Ages.

Two dim-witted servants to an elderly, wealthy woman learn that they are to inherent the late woman's money, on the condition that they have to care for her rambuncous pet cat, which is not an easy thing to do so.

A veterinarian in Figarolo, Giuliano Goberti has also been providing care to the villagers since the death of Dr. Lofal, but the arrival of a luscious replacement for the vacant doctor precipitates events. While she prescribes drugs, Giuliano orders the bedridden Countess to eat well and exercise. A Roman journalist reports on the miraculous results. Soon the quiet little Italian town is invaded by a motley crew of imaginary patients, who have to bring an animal with them to save the vet from trouble for practicing medicine illegally. In the end, the brave Giuliano marries the lovely doctoress, thus curing their celibacy.

Young boy who sees his father gunned down kills the assassin. Years later, he has grown up to be a successful bounty hunter who is feared by many. And then one day he discovers secrets to his past...

Anti-Communist propaganda film, in which the victory of Mao Tse-Tung's People's Liberation Army is seen through the eyes of an American journalist reporting from the Nationalists' side.

The financially strained and increasingly desperate, Lester Parsons concocts a brilliant get-rich-quick scheme; cruise the lonely hearts ads for rich women to fleece. Too bad then, that Lester’s also a psychotic cannibal who enjoys mutilating these lovelorn souls, via his trusty chainsaw, and using their flesh for his dinner. When a copycat killer threatens to bring him down, Lester must do all he can to prevent this new killer’s sloppy work from ruining them both.

Mixing dramatizations and real-life interviews, this film tells the story of four Jewish children who endured the brutal anti-Semitism of fascist Italy.

Sofia is a young student in an acting class who learns some of the secrets of the trade from three great actresses: Mariangela Melato teaches her to lie, Stefania Sandrelli teaches her to tell the truth, and Alida Valli teaches her about the illusion of art. Lies, truth, and illusion that Sofia tries to apply to everyday life, to her relationship with her man and her best friend.

A defense counsellor and a judge are at loggerheads and the latter thinks his liver condition depends on the lawyer's ploys to get his clients acquitted.

A man who had everything taken away from him, including his family, by his brother teams up with a young card player in order to take revenge on the brother.

Nicoletta is a young rebel, cherished by his forgiving father, until an old relative joins the family after the wedding of her sister, and insists that the impetuous girl is sent to college. Nicoletta becomes a true tornado for educators trying in vain to bring her under control.

Don Felice Sciosciammocca, a poor and simple man, goes to the day, hoping that sooner or later will come the right opportunity to change his life. A nice day at Don Felice comes a parcel from a dear cousin, which contains three pairs of old trousers. Apparently only common value objects, but they will create great surprises.

Carolina Miceli, widow of Salvatore Caruso, arrived at the bedside of the dying boss Gaetano Liguoro, tells how, discordant about drug trafficking, the brothers Gaetano and Tony Liguori have opened hostilities against his father Calogero Miceli, backed by politicians.

Paolo and Maria are two elementary teachers, who love each other, but can not have a child.

A traveling "corps de ballet" is stranded in a small Western town, where the town is being terrorized by an outlaw named El Diablo. In order to hold the town at bay, he is holding several citizens as hostages. In an exciting turn of events, a medical student and Lola Colt, one of the dancers, rebel against El Diablo in an attempt to rescue the hostages.

Cerasella escapes just before her marriage with Alfredo and meets Bruno, the son of a wealthy industrialist.

Michael King is hired by a rich banker to track down his son, a famous nuclear physicist, who disappeared with a secret formula.

Luisa's dreams of love comes true in a hotel in the mountains.

An older couple finally travels to the sea, reliving old memories along the way.

This is a true story of Luisa Spagnoli who was an Italian businesswoman, famous for creating a women's fashion store and the chocolate brand, Perugia. The show is a romantic telling of her life. Considering that women were not involved in business, it is an amazing story of someone way ahead of her time.

Ignazio is married to a much younger girl, as she starts being attracted by a handsome young man. The new couple set up several plans to kill the cuckhold, but.. it always seems to work out for lucky Ignazio!

«Destroy your ego» states writing on a wall left by a friend who died in tragic circumstances. The sentence triggers a thought process in the author’s mind, Cosimo Terlizzi, leading him to delve deep into himself. His thoughts are registered as in a spontaneous diary made of a couple’s life, voyeurism, constant geographical changes, multi media betrayals and book readings. The collected traces take him to discover the lights and shadows of his personality. What emerges is man’s dual nature, divided between instinct and morality.

Catene is a 1974 Italian melodramatic film directed by Silvio Amadio. The film is the re-make of the 1949 top grossing film with the same title by Raffaello Matarazzo. It was a commercial failure, grossing about 60 million lire.

A woman wants to graduate to the Italian Naval Academy in the 60s. She has to fight her family, her friends and a world not ready to accept her.

it's a fast moving blood and thunder tale well rendered and at least rooted in fact, and has a good feel for the period. It's interesting to have a look at somewhere else in medieval Europe besides England and France for a change. After all, Spain, Portugal, and the Italian states and some other principalities were big players at that time, too.

In order to put an end to the numerous ambushes on the gold transports which are a real menace to the finances of the American government, the agent Joe Ford, called Dynamite Joe due to his liking for explosives, is entrusted with controlling the next transfer.

Sergio is a former hitman who has just recently retired. His routine is disrupted by the visit of an old friend. He wants to hire Sergio for one last assignment: to kill the Ventura brothers, two dangerous criminals.

Laura Rush, director of a luxury New York wine shop, has launched a campaign to buy Italian wineries to unify under her brand. Things become tangled when beautiful Anna Monti, a former top model, arrives in Italy.

Giovanni, known as "Banana" because of his mania for wearing a Brazil jersey, is a 14-year-old boy trying not to give up on his dreams in a world of frustrated, giving up and courageless people. Out of Competition "Sezione Cinema al parco" Giffoni 2015

Film in five episodes on the female universe. Among the women portrayed, neglected wives who become prostitutes, a worker who improvises a sexy bomb and a priestess who gives herself as wife to an emigrant.

Take an irascible dwarf whose surname is Piccolo, with an easy trigger and an immoderate passion for Pupo and his songs. Then add an undercover policeman whose surname is Doll who doesn't even dare to declare himself to the woman he is in love with and plays tough disguised as a pseudo-criminal. Then you end up with Silvano, a former drug addict in perennial religious mystical crisis, who steals from apartments to survive, only to leave holy cards to be forgiven for the pain caused.