Days of Glory: Italian Neorealist Classics

The film series "Days of Glory" (which takes its title from the opening-night film, an omnibus production) showcases the highly influential Neorealist period in Italian cinema, including several films that have not been screened in Houston for years. Born out of the ruins of World War II, the Neorealist movement’s first rallying cry came from screenwriter Cesare Zavattini, who called for a new kind of Italian film, one with no need for plots (which attempted to impose “order” on an already lived-in reality) or professional actors. Instead, it would take to the streets and hills to document the true lives, sorrows, and pleasures of the Italian people. Except where noted, film descriptions are courtesy of University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive Art & Film Notes.

Made possible by Cinecittà International, a division of Cinecittà Holding; Cinecittà Luce S.p.A.; the Consulate General of Italy in Houston (Fabrizio Nava, Consul General); and the Instituto Italiano di Cultura in Los Angeles (Alberto di Mauro, director and Massimo Sarti, deputy director). Special thanks to Rosaria Folcarelli, Cinecittà Luce S.p.A.; Susan Oxtoby, Pacific Film Archive; Ian Birnie, Los Angeles County Museum of Art; James Quandt, Toronto International Film Festival; Peggy Parsons, National Gallery of Art; and Maria Mocci, Consulate General of Italy in Houston.