Basilio Franchina Movies
Gloria (Gena Rowlands), a self-involved woman in her forties who was once a mobster's mistress, is asked to look after Philip (Juan Adames), the son of her Mafia-connected Puerto Rican neighbors. This temporary set-up becomes permanent when the neighbors are killed in a mob hit. Philip has in his possession a diary containing a record of illegal Mafia activities; thus the boy is as good as dead unless Gloria takes decisive action. With Philip in tow, Gloria leads the hit men on a frantic chase around Manhattan, and during the various gunfire exchanges, more than holds her own. Offering to exchange the diary for the boy's life, Gloria is rebuffed by the vendetta-driven assassins. Where once she was content squirreling herself away in her lonely apartment, Gloria now must face a lifetime on the run. Directed on a more commercial level than was customary for John Cassavetes (with a subversive streak of self-parody in the bargain), Gloria served as an excellent showcase for Cassavetes' wife Gena Rowlands. The film won the Golden Lion Award at the 1980 Berlin Film Festival. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gena Rowlands, John Adames, (more)
- 1972
L'Attentat is a political thriller based largely on a true story (the Ben Barka affair), which recounts how the French government and the American CIA connived to have a socialist in exile murdered before he could return to his homeland and start a revolution. Darien, a French journalist (Jean-Louis Tritignant), lures his friend Sadiel (Gian Maria Volonte) from his safe refuge in Geneva to appear on an American-made TV show. In doing so he is, perhaps unwittingly, setting him up for murder. Captured at the border by the French police, Sadiel is given over to a mysterious general from another country who tortures him to try to find out who his supporters are. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Michel Piccoli, Jean-Louis Trintignant, (more)
Based on a novel by Jack D. Hunter, The Blue Max is a World War I aviation drama, told from the German point of view. Low-born infantryman George Peppard becomes a pilot, almost deliberately stepping on the sensibilities of his aristocratic comrades in the process. A national hero, Peppard wins the Blue Max, the highest award that can be bestowed upon an aviator. His fame is exploited by general James Mason, who tolerates Peppard's affair with Mason's wife Ursula Andress. The canny Mason knows that, eventually, Peppard will be expendable, and a "heroic" death can be arranged. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Peppard, James Mason, (more)
Though Fall of the Roman Empire is now infamous as the epic which destroyed the cinematic "empire" of producer Samuel Bronston, the film is actually an above-average historical drama, attempting to make sense of the political intrigues which resulted in the dissolution of the Glory That Was Rome. The film begins with wise, diplomatic emperor Marcus Aurelius (Alec Guinness) calling together the various representatives of the many nations within the Empire as a means of securing peace and prosperity for all involved. When Marcus intimates that he intends to turn over his crown to adopted son Livius (Stephen Boyd) rather than the logical successor Commodus (Christopher Plummer), he is poisoned by one of Commodus' cronies. Marcus' daughter Lucilla (Sophia Loren) tries to get Livius to claim the throne, but he wants no part of it; thus, the fate of the empire is in the incompetent hands of the preening Commodus. Despite efforts by cooler heads to save Rome from ruin, Commodus vainly declares himself a god and kills anyone who poses a threat to him. When he learns that Lucilla actually has a stronger claim to the throne than he does, Commodus condemns her to be burned at the stake. Only then does Livius intervene, slaying Commodus and promising to try to pick up the pieces of the disintegrating empire. Attempting to find a common ground between history buffs and action fans, Fall of the Roman Empire has come to be regarded as a classic. Alas, audiences in 1964 had grown weary of epics (especially after the highly touted but disappointing Cleopatra), and failed to turn out in sufficient enough numbers to justify Fall's exorbitant cost. Virtually wiped out, Samuel Bronston would not be able to return to filmmaking until 1971, and then only on a much smaller and more pinchpenny scale. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Alec Guinness, Sophia Loren, (more)
- 1955
Sophia Loren was still in the "Anna Magnani" phase of her career when she starred in La Donna del Flume (The River Girl). Sophia is cast as Nives, the girlfriend of capricious cigarette smuggler Gino Lodi (Rik Battaglia). When Gino deserts her, the impregnated Nives is soured on all men, including the "right" one, a likeable police guard (Gerald Oury). The first half of the film plays for laughs, while the second half evolves into a lachrymose soap opera. Through it all, Sophia Loren looks like a million lire--and she even gets to sing and dance! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sophia Loren, Rik Battaglia, (more)
- 1952
Cavalleria Rusticana is adapted from the popular one-act play of the same name. Set in rural Sicily, the anecdotal story concerns a deserting soldier named Turiddu (Leonardo Cortese) who returns home to discover that his flirtatious sweetheart Lola (Doris Duranti) has married another. As consolation, Turiddu inaugurates a romance with Santuzza (Isa Pola), but before long he is carrying on an illicit relationship with Lola. The spurned Santuzza informs Lola's husband (Carlo Ninchi) of what's going on behind his back, and the result is a bloody duel. Written by Giovanni Verga, Cavalleria Rusticana had previously been transformed into an opera by Mascagni, whose music is absent from this adaptation. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
