Le Amiche ([le aˈmiːke], lit. '"The girlfriends"') is a 1955 Italian drama film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and starring Eleonora Rossi Drago, Gabriele Ferzetti, Franco Fabrizi, and Valentina Cortese.[3][4] It is based on Cesare Pavese's 1949 novella Tra donne sole (lit. '"Only among women"').[3][4] It premiered at the Venice Film Festival[3] where it was awarded the Silver Lion.[5]
| Le Amiche | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Michelangelo Antonioni |
| Written by |
|
| Based on | Tra donne sole by Cesare Pavese |
| Produced by | Giovanni Addessi |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Gianni Di Venanzo |
| Edited by | Eraldo Da Roma |
| Music by | Giovanni Fusco |
Production company | Trionfalcine |
| Distributed by | Titanus |
Release date |
|
Running time | 106 minutes[a] |
| Country | Italy |
| Language | Italian |
Le Amiche portrays a group of five upper-class women in Turin and their relationships with men.
Plot
Clelia returns from Rome to her native city Turin, where she is assigned to supervise the opening of a branch of the Roman fashion salon where she has been previously working. By coincidence, she is confronted with the failed suicide attempt of a young woman named Rosetta and gets acquainted with her circle of Turin socialites, which includes Rosetta, the coquettish Mariella, Momina, a woman in her thirties who lives separated from her husband and has changing affairs, and artist Nene, who lives with her painter boyfriend Lorenzo. The construction work on the salon, whose opening lies only a few days ahead, is not finished yet, for which Clelia scolds the architect in charge Cesare, who turns out to be Momina's present affair. Through Cesare, Clelia also meets his assistant Carlo, a member of the working class. Although she feels attracted to Carlo, she is soon confronted with the class distinctions between him, herself and her new friends, although Clelia grew up in one of Turin's poor quarters as well.
While the five women, Cesare and Lorenzo take a trip to the beach, it becomes evident that Rosetta has fallen in love with Nene's partner Lorenzo, who was also the reason for her suicide attempt. The two start an affair, as do Clelia and Carlo. Rosetta tries to talk Lorenzo into leaving Nene for her, but Lorenzo, whose last exhibition was unsuccessful in contrast to Nene's, remains hesitant. During the opening of the salon, Nene, who has sensed the attraction between Rosetta and Lorenzo, offers to let him go. When the group later meets in a restaurant, Cesare mocks Lorenzo for his lack of artistic success, and the two men get into a fight. Rosetta follows Lorenzo, who tells her that he cannot give her the love she is looking for. Lorenzo returns to Nene, who eventually accepts him back, even if it means that she will have to reject her agent's offer to move her studio to the US.
Soon after, Rosetta drowns herself in the Po river. When Momina remains unmoved by her friend's death, Clelia attacks her for her coldness and cynism in front of the salon customers and her employer. Convinced that she will lose her job, Clelia hints at Carlo the possibility of a relationship, but when her sympathetic employer offers her to return to the salon in Rome, she chooses her professional career over the prospect of living with him. She asks him to meet for a last time, but Carlo does not show up, instead secretly watching her departure on the train to Rome.
Cast
- Eleonora Rossi Drago as Clelia
- Gabriele Ferzetti as Lorenzo
- Franco Fabrizi as Cesare
- Valentina Cortese as Nene
- Yvonne Furneaux as Momina
- Madeleine Fischer as Rosetta
- Anna Maria Pancani as Mariella
- Luciano Volpato as Tony
- Maria Gambarelli as Clelia's employer
- Ettore Manni as Carlo
Production and release
Antonioni adapted the screenplay from Pavese's novella in collaboration with Suso Cecchi d'Amico and Alba de Céspedes, assigning the dramaturgy to d'Amico and the dialogue to Céspedes.[3] The film was shot on location in Turin, produced by the Trionfalcine production company, Rome.[3] It premiered at the Venice Film Festival on 7 September 1955 and was distributed in Italy through Titanus.[3]
Awards
- 1955 Venice Film Festival Silver Lion Award
- 1956 Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Silver Ribbon Award for Best Director (Michelangelo Antonioni)
- 1956 Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists Silver Ribbon Award for Best Supporting Actress (Valentina Cortese)
Notes
- ^ Running time according to the restored Masters of Cinema (UK) and Criterion Collection (US) Blu-ray releases[1][2]
References
- ^ "Le amiche". DVDBeaver. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ "Le amiche". Criterion Collection. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f Jansen, Peter W.; Schütte, Wolfram, eds. (1984). Michaelangelo Antonioni. Munich and Vienna: Carl Hanser Verlag.
- ^ a b Pipolo, Tony (7 June 2016). "Le amiche: Friends—Italian Style". Criterion Collection. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ "Die Freundinnen". Filmdienst (in German). Retrieved 4 January 2023.