Cinema
Todo modo
Elio Petri · 1976
Synopsis
An epidemic strikes Italy. Leaders of the Christian Democrat party, together with bankers and industrialists, withdraw for spiritual exercises in the underground rooms of an isolated building, under the guidance of a Jesuit, Don Gaetano. Among them is the Party's President, who is known only as M. While the epidemic spreads outside, the retreatants pray and negotiate their positions.
Context
The film is based on a novel by Leonardo Sciascia. The sets are by Dante Ferretti, the music by Ennio Morricone. Gian Maria Volonté plays a President inspired by Aldo Moro, opposite Marcello Mastroianni as a Jesuit. Released on 30 April 1976, it left cinemas after about a month and became almost invisible after Moro's kidnapping in 1978. It was restored in 2014 by the Cineteca di Bologna and the Museo nazionale del cinema in Turin.
Who it is for
Over two hours, in Italian. A dark, satirical fable about the Christian Democrat party of the time.
Prizes and reception
Long almost invisible, it returned to Italian cinemas in 2015, then to foreign screens, as at MoMA in New York in 2024.
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