The Witches (1967 film)

The Witches
(Le Streghe)
Italian film poster
Directed by Luchino Visconti
Mauro Bolognini
Pier Paolo Pasolini
Franco Rossi
Vittorio De Sica
Produced by Dino De Laurentiis
Screenplay by Giuseppe Patroni Griffi
Cesare Zavattini
Age & Scarpelli
Bernardino Zapponi
Pier Paolo Pasolini
Fabio Carpi
Enzo Muzzi
Starring Silvana Mangano
Clint Eastwood
Annie Girardot
Totò
Alberto Sordi
Music by Piero Piccioni
Ennio Morricone
Cinematography Giuseppe Rotunno
Edited by Mario Serandrei
Nino Baragli
Giorgio Serralonga
Adriana Novelli
Production
company
Distributed by Dear Film (Italy)
Lopert Pictures Corporation (US)
United Artists (International)
Release date
  • 1967 (1967)
Running time
110 minutes
Country Italy
France
Language Italian

The Witches (Italian: Le streghe) is a 1967 comedy anthology film produced by Dino De Laurentiis in 1965.[1] It consists of 5 short stories, directed by Luchino Visconti, Franco Rossi, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Mauro Bolognini and Vittorio De Sica. Each story is about witches and features Silvana Mangano.

This is one of De Laurentiis' more eclectic films. Clint Eastwood also makes an appearance in the final story.

Segments

"The Witch Burned Alive"

A famous actress arrives in an Austrian chalet to spend an evening with friends. The woman is gotten drunk by the guests, and when she falls unconscious, friends remove her makeup to look at the imperfections of her face, always believed beautiful by her fans.

"Civic Sense"

A man is wounded in a traffic accident. A woman stops the car and offers to take him to the hospital. The woman, however, only does this to pass the road traffic. When she arrives at her destination, she throws him out.

"The Earth Seen from the Moon"

This comic episode, directed by Pasolini, tells the story of a red-headed father and son, Ciancicato and Baciu Miao (Totò and Ninetto Davoli). Ciancicato has just lost his wife and wants to marry a new wife. Ciancicato finds a deaf girl among the shacks on the outskirts of Rome and makes her his bride. To buy a better house nearby, he concocts a plan for her to threaten to commit suicide (distraught by her sick children) by jumping from the Coliseum, and take a collection to save her, but she slips on a banana peel and falls, and is buried next to his former wife.

"The Girl from Sicily"

In this short episode, a Sicilian woman tells her father a man made a pass at her; he retaliates by massacring the family.

"An Evening Like the Others"

Clint Eastwood is a western movie lover who does not know how to change the flat relationship with his wife. One day Eastwood disguises himself as a gunslinger to entertain his wife, but she is not impressed and he realizes that their relationship is broken forever. In the final scene, she imagines herself as a glamorous star, walking along in an evolving series of haute couture while being ogled by a growing crowd of middle aged businessmen. She lastly dons a magnificent gown made of multiple layers of silk, each in a vibrant shade, which she peels away layer by layer.

Episodes and directors

DirectorItalian titleEnglish title
Luchino Visconti"La strega bruciata viva""The Witch Burned Alive"
Mauro Bolognini"Senso civico""Civic Sense"
Pier Paolo Pasolini"La Terra vista dalla Luna""The Earth Seen from the Moon"
Franco Rossi"La siciliana""The Girl from Sicily"
Vittorio De Sica"Una serata come le altre""An Evening Like the Others"

Cast

ActorPortrayedEpisode(s)
Silvana ManganoGloria
Lady
Assurda Cai
Nunzia
Giovanna
"The Witch Burned Alive"
"Civic Sense"
"The Earth Seen from the Moon"
"The Girl from Sicily"
"An Evening Like the Others"
Annie GirardotValeria"The Witch Burned Alive"
Francisco RabalValerie's Husband"The Witch Burned Alive"
Massimo GirottiSportsman"The Witch Burned Alive"
Elsa AlbaniGossip"The Witch Burned Alive"
Alberto Sordi"Truck Driver"Civic Sense"
TotòCiancicato Miao"The Earth Seen from the Moon"
Angelo SantiGordon"An Evening Like the Others"
Piero TorrisiBatman"Civic Sense"
Luigi LeoniHer Husband"The Earth Seen from the Moon"
Marilù ToloWaitress"The Witch Burned Alive"
Pietro TordiFather"The Girl from Sicily"
Véronique VendellYoung girlfriend"The Witch Burned Alive"
Clint EastwoodCarlone (Charlie in English dub)"An Evening Like the Others"
Dino MeleWaiter"The Witch Burned Alive"
Franco MoruzziSadik"Civic Sense"
Helmut BergerWaiter"The Witch Burned Alive"
Laura BettiA tourist"The Earth Seen from the Moon"
Armando Bottin"Nembo Kid""Civic Sense"
Clara CalamaiEx-actress"The Witch Burned Alive"
Ninetto DavoliBaciù Miao"The Earth Seen from the Moon"
Leslie FrenchIndustrialist"The Witch Burned Alive"
Gianni GoriDiabolik"An Evening Like the Others"
Paolo GozlinoMandrake"An Evening Like the Others"
Valentino MacchiMan in stadium"An Evening Like the Others"

Crew

Screenwriters

ScreenwriterEpisode
Giuseppe Patroni Griffi
Cesare Zavattini
"The Witch Burned Alive"
Age & Scarpelli
Bernardino Zapponi
"Civic Sense"
Pier Paolo Pasolini"The Earth Seen from the Moon"
Age & Scarpelli
Bernardino Zapponi
"The Girl from Sicily"
Cesare Zavattini
Fabio Carpi
Enzo Muzii
"An Evening Like the Others"

Other

Ennio Morricone
Piero Piccioni
Composers (Music score)
Giuseppe RotunnoCinematographer
Alfredo de LaurentiisExecutive producer
Mario Garbuglia
Piero Poletto
Art directors
Piero TosiCostume designer
Adriana Novelli
Giorgio Serralonga
Mario Serandrei
Nino Baragli
Editors
Renzo MarignanoFirst assistant director
Goffredo RocchettiMakeup

Release

Le streghe was never released outside of Europe as United Artists bought the film when Clint Eastwood's career began to take off. United Artists decided not to release it in theaters but instead kept it in their library vault to prevent its viewing.[2]

References

Bibliography

  • Munn, Michael (1992). Clint Eastwood: Hollywood's Loner. London: Robson Books. ISBN 0-86051-790-X.
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