Bitter Rice (1949)
Silvana Mangano in
Bitter Rice / Riso Amaro (1949) - Giuseppe De Santis
Italian poster for Riso Amaro
Image sourced: here.
French poster for Riz Amer
Image sourced: here.
Bitter Rice
Bitter Rice (Riso Amaro, 1949) is an Italian movie, written and directed by Giuseppe De Santis.
Produced by Dino De Laurentiis, starring Silvana Mangano and Vittorio Gassman, Bitter Rice was a commercial success in Europe and America. It was a product of the Italian neorealism style. The film was nominated for the 1950 Academy Award for Best Story. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitter_Rice [Aug 2005]
Description
One of Italy's most commercially successful films, Bitter Rice packed theaters around the world despite being banned by the Legion of Decency in the United States. Though intended as a scathing indictment of harsh conditions endured by women laboring in Italy's rice fields, the film's enormous popularity was largely attributed to the erotic appeal of young Silvana Mangano. The former Miss Rome became a star overnight for her sultry debut as an impoverished yet voluptuous laborer who turns down the chance to emigrate to a better life in South America in favor of a steamy affair with her best friend's lover. Ironically, Marxist writer and director Giuseppe De Santis, one of the founders of Italy's post-World War II neorealist movement, virtually brought the genre to an end with Bitter Rice by demonstrating that sex was a far greater draw than social criticism. --via Amazon.com
Silvana Mangano
Silvana Mangano (April 21, 1930 - December 16, 1989) was the most sexy actress of Italy's neo-realistic period. She was born in Rome, Italy. Trained as a dancer, she was supporting herself as a model.
Mangano's earliest connection with filmmaking occurred through her romantic relationship with actor Marcello Mastroianni. This led her to a movie contract, though it would take sometime for Mangano to ascend to international stardom with her stunning performance in Bitter Rice (Riso Amaro, Giuseppe De Santis, 1949). --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silvana_Mangano [Aug 2005]
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