Ossessione

Ossessione (Luchino Visconti, 1943) is generally considered to be the first Neorealist film. It is also Luchino Visconti's first feature film, and the first of several adaptations of James M. Cain's novel, The Postman Always Rings Twice.

Related Topics:
Luchino Visconti - Neorealist - James M. Cain - The Postman Always Rings Twice

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Given a copy of the novel by Jean Renoir during the shooting of Une partie de campagne, Visconti decided to use it as a vehicle for his ideas about presenting realism in cinema. Visconti changed the setting from Southern California to the Po Valley, which was one of the poorest areas in Italy. Because the film depicts the plight of the very poor, and is quite negative in tone--very much in contrast to other Italian films of the time--the film met with much objection wherever it was shown (Vittorio Mussolini famously walked out during the premiere, shouting "this is not Italy!"). Despite this, it received generally favorable response from the critics, who sensed a change in the direction of Italian cinema. This shift was cemented with the release of Roma, città aperta immediately after the war.

Related Topics:
Jean Renoir - Une partie de campagne - Southern California - Po Valley - Vittorio Mussolini - Roma, città aperta

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Once the war was over, distribution of the film was again restricted, but this time by the occupying forces. Visconti had been unable to secure the rights to the novel due to the wartime circumstances, and in the meantime Metro-Goldwyn Mayer had procured them and begun making their own version, starring John Garfield and Lana Turner (The Postman Always Rings Twice - dir. Tay Garnett, 1946). The film was not permitted to be shown outside of Italy until 1976. Consequently, the first Neorealist film was not available to the general public until long after the Italian Neorealist movement had ended in 1952 with Umberto D. (Vittorio De Sica, 1952).

Related Topics:
Metro-Goldwyn Mayer - John Garfield - Lana Turner - The Postman Always Rings Twice - Tay Garnett - Neorealist - Umberto D. - Vittorio De Sica

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