FORTUNELLA Directed by Eduardo De Filippo and starring Giulietta Masina, Paul Douglas and Alberto Sordi, tells the misadventures of a young and naive girl whose life wavers between a shabby group of strolling players and the dreams of an impossible redemption. The now famous theme of ""The Godfather"" was actually taken from FORTUNELLA, and this self-plagiarism prevented Rota from gaining a well-deserved Oscar Prize for the Best Music Score in 1972. The music had never been officially released on record to date.
The famed Italian director Mario Monicelli shot LA GRANDE GUERRA in 1959, having Silvana Mangano, Vittorio Gassman, Alberto Sordi and Bernard Blier as main stars: the film tells the story of cowardice turned into heroism of two infantrymen on the Alps front du-ring the most bloody phases of World War I. The movie, half comedy half war drama, was one of the most controversial and discussed works appeared on Italian screens for decades, and the music by Rota compassionately accompanies and underlines the sorrow, the tragedy and the few happy hours of those men. This score was never issued on record before.
Directed by Oscar-winner Elio Petri and starring Claire Bloom and Alberto Sordi, IL MAESTRO DI VIGEVANO is a witty satiric movie about dreams and mean feelings of Italian middle-class in the years of economic boom, seen through the eyes of a former school teacher turned into a shoe manufacturer. The humorous score by Rota has been previously released on a 1963 Extended Playing only. Contains 8 pages booklet. |
