Nunzio Malasomma Movies
- 1968
Craig Hill stars as Billy Mack, one of a gang of outlaws wrongfully accused of murdering several women, in this psychologically-oriented spaghetti western. Forced to flee from the local sheriff, the gang hides out in an abandoned fort, where the pressures of their situation make them turn on each other like caged animals. Hill stands out among a familiar genre cast including Frank Brana, Tomas Blanco, Aldo Sambrell, and Jorge Martin. The cinematographer was future action director Stelvio Massi. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide
- 1961
In this biblical drama, set during the waning years of the Roman Empire, the trouble begins as the Christians continue to be persecuted. The daughter of a wealthy patrician whips the stuffing out of a newly purchased Christian slave who stubbornly refuses to wrestle in the ring. Later the girl and the slave fall in love, and she comes to understand their plight. She then learns that some of her closest friends and relatives are closet Christians. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1948
The Italian historical melodrama Il Diavolo Bianco (The White Devil) is set in the Caucaucus in the mid-19th century. The title character is a masked swashbuckler who intends to free his homeland from a despotic provincial governor. In time-honored fashion, Il Diavolo Bianco spends his days in the guise of a foppish, ring-kissing courtier to the selfsame governor. It's Scarlet Pimpernel Italian style, and it's good. Rossano Brazzi reportedly landed a Hollywood film contract on the strength of his starring performance in Il Diavolo Bianco. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rossano Brazzi, Annette Bach, (more)
- 1938
When time came to adapt Aldo De Benedetti's novel Eravamo Sette Sorelle for the screen, De Benedetti undertook the job himself. The title, which translates as We Were Seven Sisters, refers to a septet of chorus girls. United only by their common job and their love for the finer things in love, the seven heroines look around for a wealthy "father." Choosing aristocrat roue Antonio Gandusio as their patsy, each girl arrives separately at Gandusio's doorstep, claiming to be the offspring of one of his previous mistresses. The plot wraps up in conventional fashion when the old man's son falls in love with the most sensible (and likeable) of the girls. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sergio Tofano, Nino Besozzi, (more)
- 1936
The English-language title of this German comedy is Dissatisfied Woman. That's putting it mildly: Lisa Brandt (Fita Benkoff) is not only dissatisfied but downright contemptuous of her old-fashioned husband Paul (Johannes Riemann). She wants to modernize their home, but he can't bear to part with such vestiges of the past as a worn-out radio, an ancient car, and the gas stove in the bathroom. On the advice of her friends, Lisa tries to "cure" her husband by pretending she doesn't recognize him any more and by treating him as a total stranger. When wifey caps her deception by pretending to make love to the family doctor, hubby is snapped out of his antiquated ways immediately! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Fita Benkhoff, Wolfgang Liebeneiner, (more)
- 1936
La Cieca di Sorrento (The Blind Girl of Sorrento) stars Dria Paola as the title character. The story is melodramatic to the nth degree, as a homicidal burglar endeavors to marry the sightless daughter of the man he killed. The burglar is worried that the girl will regain her vision, and he intends to do away with her the moment this happens. Meanwhile, a handsome doctor struggles to cure the girl's blindness, intending to prove that his own father, who was falsely executed for the murder, was innocent. The serial-like screenplay was based on an 1875 novel by Francesco Mastriani. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Anna Magnani
- 1931
Fra Diavolo is based on the 1830 comic opera by Daniel Auber. Tino Pattiera plays the title character, based on a real-life Italian bandit who disguised himself as a Marquis to divest the wealthy and famous of their valuables undetected. The original Eugene Scribe libretto has been altered several times over the past 170 years, depending on the political mood of the times: in this version, Diavolo is no mere outlaw but the Robin Hood-like leader of a band of revolutionaries, bent on toppling the rotting royalty. He disguises himself as a royal ambassador, intercepts an important message from the King, and successfully mounts his revolution, with his sweetheart Anita (Madeleine Breville) at his side. Surprisingly, this Fra Diavolo is far less faithful to its source to the more famous Hollywood version of 1933, which starred Laurel and Hardy and Dennis King and was released in most areas as The Devil's Brother. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Germaine Kerjean
