Luchino Visconti's 185-minute film The Leopard (Il Gattopardo, 1963) begins outside a quiet Italian villa. The camera gradually makes its way closer to the estate, gliding across the windows -- open to the early summer breeze -- until settling on a wafting lace curtain. The curtain invites the camera inside, and we come along with it. Inside the room, Father Pirrone (Romolo Valli) leads Prince Don Fabrizio Salina (Burt Lancaster), his wife Maria (Rina Morelli), and the rest of the Salinas through prayer. As Pirrone continues his mass, we hear a commotion outside. The aristocratic family tries to continue through the service in their ornate setting until Don Fabrizio, upset and distracted by the noise, asks one of his servants about the situation. The servant informs him that a dead soldier has been found in the Salina's garden; it seems that il Risorgimento, the Italian Resurgence, is near their doorstep.
- 7/1/2010
- by Drew Morton
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