Visconti’s 1943 debut feature kicked off Negro sobre blanco, a new cycle of films based on the works of James M. Cain. Until now, I had no idea who he was, although I watched the 1981 film The Postman Always Rings Twice — which, I read now, is the fourth adaptation of the novel of the same name — a number of times. Well, Ossessione — the second adaptation — is very different.
Quite apart from the fact that the story set in rural Italy, the protagonists, Giovanna (Clara Calamai) and Gino (Massimo Girotti), are more human and likeable than their 1981 American counterparts (that is, Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange). Even Giovanna’s unloved husband, Signor Bragana (Juan de Landa), comes out as somehow lovable: going fishing with a local priest, singing an aria from La traviata... For me, the best parts of the movie are Gino’s first meeting with “Lo Spagnolo” (Elio Marcuzzo) and ditto with Anita (Dhia Cristiani) as well as the scene on the beach (closer to the end). Oh, and that Trieste was mentioned a couple of times.
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