Novecento (1976)

Director:

Bernardo Bertolucci

Writers:

Franco Arcalli (writer)
Bernardo Bertolucci (writer)
(more)

Release Date:

4 November 1977 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Romance | War

Plot:

Set in Italy, the film follows the lives and interactions of two boys/men, one born a bastard of peasant stock (Depardieu)...

Plot Keywords:

Peasant | Friend | Italy | Epic | Land Owner

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Robert De Niro	...	Alfredo Berlinghieri
Gérard Depardieu	...	Olmo Dalcò (as Gerard Depardieu)
Dominique Sanda	...	Ada Fiastri Paulhan
Francesca Bertini	...	Sister Desolata
Laura Betti	...	Regina
Werner Bruhns	...	Ottavio Berlinghieri
Stefania Casini	...	Neve
Sterling Hayden	...	Leo Dalcò
Anna Henkel	...	Anita
Ellen Schwiers	...	Amelia
Alida Valli	...	Signora Pioppi
Romolo Valli	...	Giovanni
Bianca Magliacca	...	Peasant
Giacomo Rizzo	...	Rigoletto
Pippo Campanini	...	Don Tarcisio
Paolo Pavesi	...	Alfredo as a Child
Roberto Maccanti	...	Olmo as a Child
Antonio Piovanelli	...	Turo Dalcò
Paulo Branco	...	Orso Dalcò (as Paolo Branco)
Liu Bosisio	...	Nella Dalcò (as Liú Bosisio)
Maria Monti	...	Rosina Dalcò
Anna-Maria Gherardi	...	Eleonora (as Anna Maria Gherardi)
Demesio Lusardi
Pietro Longari Ponzoni	...	Pioppi
Angelo Pellegrino	...	Tailor
José Quaglio	...	Aranzini
Clara Colosimo	...	Woman who accuses Olmo
Mario Meniconi
Carlotta Barilli	...	Peasant
Odoardo Dall'aglio	...	Oreste Dalcò
Piero Vida
Vittorio Fanfoni	...	Fanfoni - a fascist
Alessandro Bosio
Sergio Serafini	...	Young Fascist
Patrizia De Clara	...	Stella
Edda Ferronao
Winni Riva
Fabio Garriba	...	Peasant at Attila's execution
Nazzareno Natale	...	Peasant at Attila's execution
Katerina Kosak
Stefania Sandrelli	...	Anita Foschi
Donald Sutherland	...	Attila Mellanchini
Burt Lancaster	...	Alfredo's Grandfather
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Francesco D'Adda	...	Soldier on train (uncredited)
Allen Midgette	...	Vagabond (uncredited)
Salvator Mureddu	...	Chief of the King's Guards (uncredited)
Mimmo Poli	...	Fascist (uncredited)
Tiziana Senatore	...	Regina as a Child (uncredited)

Directed by
Bernardo Bertolucci

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Franco Arcalli		writer
Bernardo Bertolucci		writer
Giuseppe Bertolucci		writer

Produced by
Alberto Grimaldi	....	producer

Original Music by
Ennio Morricone

Cinematography by
Vittorio Storaro

Film Editing by
Franco Arcalli

Production Design by
Maria Paola Maino
Gianni Quaranta

Art Direction by
Ezio Frigerio

Set Decoration by
Maria Paola Maino

Costume Design by
Gitt Magrini

Makeup Department
Paolo Borselli	....	hair stylist
Iole Cecchini	....	hair stylist (as Jole Cecchini)
Giannetto De Rossi	....	key makeup artist
Fabrizio Sforza	....	makeup artist
Maurizio Trani	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Giuseppe Banchelli	....	production supervisor
Paolo De Andreis	....	production manager
Augusto Marabelli	....	production supervisor
Alessandro Mattei	....	production supervisor
Silvano Spoletini	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Massimo Arcalli	....	assistant director
Suzanne Durrenberger	....	second assistant director
Clare Peploe	....	second assistant director
Gabriele Polverosi	....	assistant director
Peter Shepherd	....	assistant director
Giovanni Soldati	....	second assistant director
Claudio Taddei	....	third assistant director
Giuseppe Bertolucci	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Carlo Agate	....	construction chief
Mauro Pagano	....	assistant production designer
Gianni Silvestri	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Fausto Ancillai	....	sound mixer
Roberto Arcangeli	....	foley artist
Michael Billingsley	....	sound editor (as Mike Billingsley)
Claudio Maielli	....	sound
Giuliano Maielli	....	sound recordist
Alessandro Peticca	....	sound editor (as Sandro Peticca)
Decio Trani	....	boom operator

Visual Effects by
Andrea Baracca	....	digital color timing: restored version HD to 35mm (uncredited)
Ludovico Bettarello	....	digital online film restoration: Technicolor Rome (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Giuseppe Alberti	....	assistant camera
Luciano Galli	....	chief electrician
Alfredo Marchetti	....	key grip
Mauro Marchetti	....	assistant camera
Angelo Novi	....	still photographer
Enzo Tosi	....	camera operator
Enrico Umetelli	....	camera operator

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Vittoria Guaita	....	assistant costume designer

Editorial Department
Gabriella Cristiani	....	assistant editor
Ugo De Rossi	....	assistant editor
Fernanda Indoni	....	second assistant editor
Ernesto Novelli	....	color technician
Rosemarie Ruddies	....	assistant editor
Elvio Sordoni	....	assistant editor

Music Department
Nando Monica	....	musician: accordion
Ennio Morricone	....	conductor
Rota	....	musician: ocarina (uncredited)

Other crew
Ferruccio Amendola	....	voice dubbing: Robert De Niro
Claudio Camaso	....	voice dubbing: Gérard Depardieu (as Claudio Volonté)
Riccardo Caneva	....	administrative director
Riccardo Cucciolla	....	dubbing director
Leonardo Curreri	....	administrator
Mario Di Biase	....	general manager
Rossella Ferrero	....	production secretary (as Rosella Ferrero)
Maurizio Forti	....	administrator
Clemente Giovannini	....	press office
Alberto Grimaldi	....	presenter
Antonio Guidi	....	voice dubbing: Donald Sutherland
Renato Mori	....	voice dubbing: Sterling Hayden
Nico Naldini	....	press office
Enzo Ocone	....	continuity
Antonio Pala	....	administrator
Giuseppe Rinaldi	....	voice dubbing: Burt Lancaster
Angelo Sarago	....	administrator
Rita Savagnone	....	voice dubbing: Dominique Sanda

Production Companies

• Produzioni Europee Associati (PEA) (as PEA Produzioni Europee Associate-Rome)
• Les Productions Artistes Associés (co-production)
• Artemis Film (co-production) (as Artemis Film GMBH - Berlin)

Distributors

• Paramount Pictures (1977) (USA) (theatrical) (cut)
• United Artists (1977) (USA) (theatrical) (cut)
• Paramount Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)
• Action Gitanes (1976) (France) (theatrical)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Filmmuseum Distributie (2006) (Netherlands) (theatrical) (re-release)
• United Artists (1976) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• 20th Century Fox (2006) (UK) (DVD)
• Abril Vídeo (19??) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Cine Video Corporation (CVC) S.r.l. (1998) (Italy) (VHS) (remastered complete version) (Italian dialogue)
• Divisa Home Video (2008) (Spain) (DVD)
• Eagle Pictures (2003) (Italy) (DVD) (uncut)
• Eagle Pictures (2007) (Italy) (DVD) (special edition) (uncut)
• Gativideo (19??) (Argentina) (VHS)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2005) (France) (DVD)
• Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment (200?) (Netherlands) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Language and Motion Ltd.  post-production (as Language & Motion, Ltd.)
• Eureka Edizioni Musicali  music publisher
• Technicolor  color by
• Veste RTC  costumes (as Sartoria Veste)
• Tirelli Costumi  costumes (as Sartoria Tirelli)
• Ditta Maggi  wigs
• Actiline  makeup
• Ditta Pompei  shoes (as Pompei)
• Ditta Rancati  props (as Rancati)
• Cooperativa  sound post-production
• Fono Roma  sound re-recording
• International Recordings  sound mixing (as International Recording)
• Orchestra dell'Unione Musicisti di Roma (U.M.R.)  orchestra (as Orchestra Sinfonica dell'Unione Musicisti di Roma)
• Cine Audio Effects  sound effects and foley design

Also Known As:

1900 (USA)
1900 - Gewalt, Macht, Leidenschaft (West Germany) (first part title)
1900 - Kampf, Liebe, Hoffnung (West Germany) (second part title)
1900: Seconde époque (France) (TV title)
Nineteen Hundred (USA) (alternative spelling)
Novecento - Atto I (Italy) (first part title)
Novecento - Atto II (Italy) (second part title)
Novecento (Argentina) (Spain) [es]
1900 (Brazil) [pt]
1900 (Finland) [fi]
1900 (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]
1900 (Greece) [el]
1900 (Sweden) [sv]
1900 - Gewalt, Macht, Leidenschaft (Austria) (first part title) [de]
1900 - Kampf, Liebe, Hoffnung (Austria) (second part title) [de]
1900 de Bertolucci (Brazil) [pt]
Huszadik század (Hungary) [hu]

Runtime:

USA:245 min (R-rated version) | 315 min (2 parts) (uncut version) | Argentina:250 min (heavily cut) | Australia:248 min (heavily cut)

Country:

Italy | France | West Germany

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Norway:18 (DVD release) (2005) | West Germany:16 (video rating) (cut) | Germany:18 (uncut version) | New Zealand:R18 | France:-16 (uncut) | Hungary:18 | USA:NC-17 (re-rating) (uncut version) (1993) (rating surrendered) | Italy:VM14 (re-release) (uncut version) | Italy:VM18 (original rating) (uncut version) (1976) | Portugal:M/16 (uncut) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Singapore:R21 (cut) | West Germany:16 (f) (original rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Spain:18 | Australia:R | Finland:K-15 | Norway:18 | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | Canada:R | USA:X (original rating) (uncut version) (1976) | USA:R (original rating) (edited version) (1976)

Filming Locations:

Busseto, Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Company:

Produzioni Europee Associati (PEA)

Trivia:

The full uncut version (315 minutes) is available in DVD since late 2006 (two discs) including some interviews with Bertolucci.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: As Attila Mellanchini is shot by the communist partisans on VE Day, a close-up is shown of a man's hand holding the pistol to Attila's head. The pistol in his hand is a Beretta M951, which only began production circa 1953 - eight years after the war ended.

Quotes:

Olmo Dalco: This is my bride-trap.
Ada Fiastri Paulhan: Have you caught any brides?
Olmo Dalco: You're the first one.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Animaniacs: Video Review/When Mice Ruled the Earth (#1.47)" (????)

Flawed, yet great

An epic about Italian political history of the first half of the 20th Century, detailing the lives of two men born on the same day. Olmo (played by Gerard Depardieu as an adult) is the bastard child of peasants and is raised to be a socialist. Alfredo (Robert De Niro) is the son of a wealthy family and will someday become lord and master of all the peasants on his land. He's a pleasant man, not cruel like his father, but he won't go out of his way to help those below him in status (including Olmo, who is his closest friend and companion). It's a huge film, and very sloppy. I would guess it would be very sloppy even in its original version (the English language version is an hour shorter at least). My biggest problem with the film is the character of Olmo. As a child (played by Roberto Maccanti), he exhibits daring and independence. As an adult, he seems like a sponge and he kind of drops out of the last third of the picture, it seemed to me. My interest dropped in the character because, first, the character does not seem to follow from childhood to adulthood, and, second, Depardieu gives a dull performance. He's handsome, but in the kind of way that makes you forget that he even exists. Maccanti, as young Olmo, leaves a much bigger impression. My second biggest problem with the film is the treatment of politics. It's no secret where Bertolucci's sympathy lies, with the communists. That's fine by me, and it's good that he has Alfredo not as the villain but as a man who turns his back and continues to live his life as a wealthy man. But there are Fascists in the film, and they are lead by Donald Sutherland. Sutherland is so evil in this film it becomes amusing. He'll do anything to get what he wants, including killing old women, children, and he even headbutts a cat! I have no real problem with showing the Italian Fascists as evil, but this is cartoonishly evil. Sutherland's character's name: Attila. No sh*t! On the other hand, I cannot help but admit that Donald Sutherland has all the most memorable scenes in the film. He may be more or less one dimensional, but I'll never forget his wicked grin, and I'll never forget the splattered blood on his forehead from that cat! Robert De Niro does a lot with his role, which is the most complex in the film, probably. His performance here matches his best work. Alfredo's wife is played by Dominique Sanda. She also gives an exceptional performance, although her character could have been (and might have been, in the full version) better developed. While I have some major problems with the overall substance of the film, there's no doubt there's a genius at work here. Several, actually. Bertolucci's direction is as good as it ever was, and his ambition seems, at least for a while, peerless. He may have had several better films, but this is as much a peak in his direction as Last Tango in Paris or The Conformist. Helping him achieve greatness far beyond what should have resulted are Vittorio Storaro, providing gorgeous, sweeping photography, and Ennio Moricone, ever the trooper with another exceptional musical score. 1900, despite heavy flaws, is indeed a great film.