Roberto Rossellini

Director

May 8, 1906 (71 years)

† June 3, 1977

Rome, Italy

Biography

Roberto Rossellini (8 May 1906 – 3 June 1977) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Rossellini was one of the directors of the Italian neorealist cinema, contributing films such as Roma città aperta (Rome, Open City 1945) to the movement.

Filmography

7.6

Germany, Year Zero

In the ruins of post-WWII Berlin, a twelve-year-old boy is left to his own devices in order to help provide for his family.

8.0

Rome, Open City

During the Nazi occupation of 1944 Rome, Resistance leader Giorgio Manfredi is pursued by the Nazis as he seeks refuge and a means of escape.

7.5

General Della Rovere

In WWII-Italy, the Gestapo blackmails a con man to impersonate a dead partisan commander in order to extract information from his fellow inmates.

7.5

Paisan

Six stories unfold in various regions, from Sicily to the northern Po Valley as American military personnel interact with a variety of Italian locals over eighteen months in the push north during the Italian Campaign of WWII as German forces retreat.

7.3

Journey to Italy

Married for eight years with no children, Brits Katherine and Alex Joyce are driving to Italy, their ultimate destination just outside of Naples to sell the villa they have just inherited from his uncle, the villa where they will be staying during their time there. On the drive, they come to the realization that this trip marks the first time that they have truly been alone together, and as such don't really know one another in the true sense.

7.4

Europa '51

A wealthy, self-absorbed Rome socialite is racked by guilt over the death of her young son. As a way of dealing with her grief and finding meaning in her life, she decides to devote her time and money to the city’s poor and sick. Her newfound, single-minded activism leads to conflicts with her husband and questions about her sanity.

7.1

Stromboli

After the end of WWII, a young Lithuanian woman and a young Italian man from Stromboli impulsively marry, but married life on the island is more demanding than she can accept.

7.2

Ro.Go.Pa.G.

Four short films by four different directors dealing with the principles of modern life.

6.0

The Seven Deadly Sins

A compilation of segments covers the seven deadly sins of greed, wrath, envy, pride, lust, sloth, and gluttony.

9.0

Cartesius

Descartes left the Jesuit college where he had spent his childhood. He doubted the knowledge that had been instilled in him, with the exception of mathematics and geometry. He enlisted in the army of the Prince of Nassau in Breda. Upon his return, he wanted to escape the worldly atmosphere and devote himself to his studies. During an intense night, he found the foundations of a new science.

6.7

The Age of the Medici

This is an exposition of the social and political history of renaissance Florentine history, told through dramatized conversations between the main participants, Cosimo de Medici and Brunelleschi.

5.5

Acts of the Apostles

This dramatization from the New Testament originated as a 342-minute, five-part television mini-series; it was subsequently released in a shortened, 280-minute version. In part one, the Apostles call the pilgrims of Jerusalem to be baptized, and Peter (Jacques Dumur) and John (Mohamed Kouka) are arrested by the Sanhedrin but later set free. In part two, Stephen (Zignani Houcine) is stoned for disobeying Mosaic Law, Philip (Bepy Mannaiuolo) baptizes an Ethiopian eunuch, and Saul (Edoardo Torricella) is blinded by the Lord while journeying to Damascus. In part three, Peter baptizes a centurion and Saul, renamed Paul, makes his first mission journey from Antioch in Syria to Pisidian Antioch. In part four, Paul preaches the equality before God of both the circumcised and uncircumcised. In part five, Paul is arrested in Jerusalem and sent to stand trial in Rome.

7.1

Socrates

A false accusation leads the philosopher Socrates to trial and condemnation in 4th century BC Athens.

6.4

Fear

Irene Wagner, the wife of the prominent German scientist Professor Albert Wagner, had been having an affair with Erich Baumann. She does not disclose this to her husband, hoping to preserve his innocence and their "perfect marriage". This fills her with anxiety and guilt. However, Johanna Schultze, Erich's jealous ex-girlfriend, learns about the affair and begins to blackmail Irene, turning Irene's psychological torture into a harsh reality.

6.7

L'Amore

L'Amore ('Love') is a 1948 Italian drama anthology film that consists of two parts, The Human Voice (Una voce umana), based on Jean Cocteau's 1929 play of the same title, and The Miracle (Il miracolo), based on Ramón del Valle-Inclán's 1904 novel Flor de santidad.

6.6

The Messiah

Rossellini takes numerous liberties with the original source material, rearranging and omitting events at will, presenting everything in a highly undramatic fashion. The film begins in the time of the Old Testament, allowing Rossellini to present the story of Jesus in its ancient, historic context.

7.1

The Flowers of St. Francis

In a series of simple and joyous vignettes, director Roberto Rossellini and co-writer Federico Fellini lovingly convey the universal teachings of the People’s Saint: humility, compassion, faith, and sacrifice. Gorgeously photographed to evoke the medieval paintings of Saint Francis’s time, and cast with monks from the Nocera Inferiore Monastery, The Flowers of St. Francis is a timeless and moving portrait of the search for spiritual enlightenment.

6.0

Vanina Vanini

Vanina Vanini, a bored, spoiled Roman countess, falls in love with a dedicated young patriot who is in Rome to assassinate a traitor to the brotherhood of the Carboneria.

6.5

Viva l'Italia!

The film shows how Italy's historic national hero Giuseppe Garibaldi (embodied by Renzo Ricci) leads a military campaign known as Expedition of the Thousand in 1860 and conquers Sicily and Naples. When the Bourbon monarchy has left Southern Italy, he supports Victor Emmanuel II of Italy who achieves a lasting unification under the aegis the House of Savoy. Roberto Rossellini has said he was prouder of this film than of any other film he ever made.

7.0

Man's Struggle for Survival

Blurring the boundaries between documentary and historical fiction, this twelve-part series examines and imagines man's struggle to survive, from the days of cave dwellers to modern journeys into space.