Gillo Pontecorvo From Resistance to Terrorism

by Celli, Carlo

• ISBN13: 9780810854406
• ISBN10: 0810854406
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-10-20
• Publisher: Scarecrow Press

Summary

Italian filmmaker Gillo Pontecorvo is best known for his films about anti-colonial insurgency and terrorism. In this book, containing several black and white photos, author Carlo Celli examines Pontecorvo's entire career, from his days as a leader in the anti-Nazi/fascist resistance during World War II to his 1992 short documentary about Algeria's struggle with Islamic fundamentalism. This is the first book-length study in English of Pontecorvo's entire career, and features in-depth examinations and re-readings of his major films Kapó (1959), The Battle of Algiers (1965), Burn! (1969), and Ogro (1979). The book also addresses Pontecorvo's largely unknown early documentaries and features, such as Giovanna (1956) and The Wide Blue Road (1957). Celli concludes with an examination of the documentary films that Pontecorvo made in the 1990s including Return to Algiers (1992). This work will be of interest to academics and students of film, but it will also have an appeal to readers concerned with issues regarding the political use of violence in the 20th century--whether it be defined as terrorism, counter-insurgency, or freedom fighting.

Author Biography

Carlo Celli is an associate professor at Bowling Green State University, Ohio.

Table of Contents

Pontecorvo and Aldo Vergano's II sole sorge ancora/Outcry (1946)	p. 1
The neorealist tradition and Pontecorvo's early documentaries, 1953-1956	p. 13
First features : Giovanna (1956) and La grande strada azzura/The wide blue road (1957)	p. 21
Kapo (1960) and the pitfalls of Holocaust re-creation	p. 31
The two endings of La battaglia di Algeri/The battle of Algiers (1966)	p. 49
The colonial, postcolonial parable of Queimada!/Burn! (1969)	p. 69
The "guilty conscience" of Ogro (1979)	p. 89
Pontecorvo's retreat : Ritorno ad Algeri/Return to Algiers (1992) and Nostalgia di protezione/Protection nostalgia (1997)	p. 103
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