Silvana Jachino Movies

Juliet of the Spirits is a fantastical showcase for Federico Fellini's vibrant imagery, starring his wife, Giulietta Masina, as the titular leading character. Juliet is a wealthy housewife who constantly fears her husband, Giorgio (Mario Pisu), is cheating on her. While she yearns for a peaceful intimate evening on the night of their 15th anniversary, the egotistical Giorgio has forgotten about it and instead arrives home with his eccentric friends. After a trip to a séance, Juliet is haunted by images from the spirit world, including obsessions from her past involving religion and her late relatives. With her sisters and mother prying into her life, Juliet seems to be seeking an inner peace amidst all the sexual temptations surrounding her. She meets her neighbor, Suzy (Sandra Milo), a showy pleasure-seeker who lives in a sensual playhouse. It appears that all of Juliet's family, friends, and fantasies demand that she loosen up and embrace sexual freedom, yet she remains chaste and dowdy, lamenting over her unfaithful husband. The reasons for Juliet's repression are not clearly defined by the narrative, despite glimpses into her supposed imagination. Forced to endure the constant bombardment of sexually charged imaginings, the demure Juliet retreats on her own. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Corsaro Nero (The Black Pirate) is a made-to-order vehicle for Italian Olympic fencing champion Ciro Verratti. The storyline is the usual Dumas-Sabatini melange concerning three virtuous brothers who are betrayed by a traitorous villain. One of the brothers is killed, and the other two swear revenge. Of these two, only one lives to see the bad guy get his just desserts -- and that one, of course, is The Black Pirate, who prides himself on being a "gentleman buccaneer." So impressive is Ciro Verratti in the dueling scenes that it hardly matters that he can't act his way out of a wet paper bag. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi