Jane's Guide to Italian Films
- alisonchino
- Jun 2
- 7 min read
In between trips to Italy, I love to return to La Vita Bella through books and films. Especially in the winter when the nights are long, I can transport myself to a sunny Tuscan villa or lose myself in a story of post-war Rome.
Italy embraced cinema early! The oldest film festival has been running in Venice since 1932. . The Italian film industry flourished in the 1950s and hit a peak in the 1960s, which is when lots of the films on this list were made.
10 Classic Italian Films to Watch
Il Postino
Mario is a simple Italian postman who learns to love poetry while delivering mail to a famous poet, which he then uses to woo local beauty Beatrice. Mario also uses poetry to tell of the struggles of working class villagers and in the process becomes a changed man.
Cinema Paradiso
In this Academy Award winning Best Foreign Language Film, we meet Salvatore, a young boy who discovers the Cinema Paradiso movie house in his village, where he falls in love with films. Later, he takes over as the Paradiso's projectionist, and is encouraged by his mentor Alfredo to leave his small town and pursue his passion for films and filmmaking.
Cinema Paradiso was shot on location in Bagheria, Sicily, and Cefalù on the Tyrrhenian Sea, and in the village of Palazzo Adriano south of Palermo.
La vita è bella (Life is Beautiful)
Winner of Best Foreign Language Film and Best Actor, this life-affirming film takes you on a journey through a young couple's Pre-WWII love affair. But when the war breaks out, the Jewish Italian librarian is sent to a Nazi concentration camp, along with his wife and son. Based on a true story, the father creates a game for his son to protect him from the horrors of internment.
Spettacolo
Every year, a small town in Tuscany has held a traditional theatre performance, but their population is aging and more young folks have moved away, leaving a lack of amateur talent. It was filmed entirely in an idyllic Tuscan village and tells the true story of the townspeople and the Poor Theater of Monticchielo.
For fifty years, they've told the story of their town in an annual theatrical performance that's open to the public. The film will inspire you to visit the town, attend the performance, donate, and ensure it exists for future generations to see.
La Dolce Vita
A classic in Italian cinema, this movie follows the life of Marcello, a journalist who spends his time working and socializing within the upper-class, high-society circle yet is troubled with his lack of happiness and life fulfillment.
Many iconic Roman landmarks are featured in the film, including the Trevi Fountain, the Colosseum, the Via Veneto, and charming Roman neighborhood backdrops that provide an authentic representation of the city’s vibe and history post-World War II. Roger Ebert consistently listed this film in his list of top 10 films of all time.
Chléb a Tulipány (Bread and Tulips)
Beloved by Italians, this romantic comedy-drama is centered around the life of Rosalba, a middle-aged woman who lives in a small town near Naples. Rosalba’s life is mundane and very normal, but it takes an unforeseen turn when she goes on a family trip and is accidentally left behind by her husband and son.
While trying to find her way back home, she makes a choice to go to Venice instead. Fuelled by courage and a yearning for adventure, Rosalba decides to begin a solo exploration.
Ladri di biciclette (Bicycle Thieves)
A simple, powerful film from 1954, In post-war Italy, a working-class man's bicycle is stolen, endangering his efforts to find work. He and his son set out to find it.
The film was shot with non-professional actors and achieves the neorealists’ aim of capturing life as it actually happens. The film appeared in the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage’s “100 Italian films to be saved,” and it is a deeply influential film both in Italy and abroad.
La grande bellezza (The Great Beauty)
Released in 2013, The Great Beauty feels like a return to classic Italian filmmaking while also being very contemporary. Directed by Paolo Sorrentino, the film follows an aging critic who starts to tire of seduction and Rome’s lavish nightlife.
Roma, Ciudad abierta (Rome, Open City)
One of Roberto Rossellini’s films most closely associated with Italian neorealism, Rome, Open City is a film-school staple. It was filmed in the crumbling ruins of Rome in the aftermath of World War II. Anna Magnani makes a strong impression in the heartbreaking sequence where her partner is rounded up by Germans.
The Leopard
Luchino Visconti’s The Leopard is a historical epic about an aging prince, his young war hero nephew, and the beautiful daughter of a wealthy family against the backdrop of the 1860s Risorgimento, aka Italian Unification.
Based on the Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa 1958 novel of the same name, the film stars Burt Lancaster, Claudia Cardinale and Alain Delon. A cut and dubbed version of the film was released in the U.S., but the longer Italian version is recommended. The Leopard is one of director Martin Scorsese’s favorite films and is also on the Vatican’s list of Best Films.
After the cultural tour of Italian cinema, you might enjoy watching some English language films set in Italy as the inspiration for your next trip abroad.
Here’s a list of 10 delightful films to watch with scenery that will have you updating your passport as soon as possible!
10 Fun English Language Films Set in Italy
Tea with Mussolini
An orphaned Italian boy is raised among a circle of British and American women living in Mussolini's Italy before and during the Second World War. The movie is based on director Franco Zeffirelli’s real life experiences. Filmed in Florence and San Gimignano, the scenery is stunning.
An Enchanted April
Four British ladies throw in together to rent an Italian villa for a month that promises “wisteria and sunshine,” an escape from the dreary, wet spring in England. Enchanted April was filmed entirely on location at Castello Brown in Portofino, on the Ligurian Coast north of the colorful Cinque Terre. It’s the same castle where the author of the 1922 novel of the same name, Elizabeth von Arnim, stayed in the 1920s.
A Room with a View
If you loved the book, you’ll also enjoy the film! A Room with a View finds a young woman traveling to Italy to experience a major culture change as she decides between following her family’s wishes or her own.
The hotel that’s featured in the film where Charlotte and Lucy stay is the fictional Pensione Bertolini — the real life Hotel degli Orafi, which is located on the banks of the Arno River. It is worth staying there because when you're in Florence, you always need a room with a view!
Much Ado About Nothing
This star-studded romantic comedy is based on one of William Shakespeare’s best comedies. Plots evolve through the usual deceptions and misunderstandings. And the setting in Italy is dreamy! It was filmed at Villa Vignamaggio, in Greve in Chianti, just 20 miles south of Florence.
Roman Holiday
A total Audrey Hepburn classic! A bored and sheltered Princess escapes her guardians at the Palace for a day and falls in love with an American newsman looking to make his journalistic mark in Rome. You might see more of the must-see Rome spots in this film than on a Roman hop-on, hop-off bus tour! This is a great one to watch before (or after) a trip to Rome.
Call Me By Your Name
This film is a coming-of-age romance film set in a small Italian town in the early 1980s. It follows the attraction between Elio (Timothee Chalamet), a 17-year-old boy, and Oliver (Armie Hammer), a 24-year-old graduate student who has come to spend his summer at Elio’s family home at the invitation of Elio’s father. The movie explores their subtle, complex, yet passionate relationship while being set against the idyllic landscape of Northern Italy.
Journey To Italy
Released in 1954, Journey to Italy stars the iconic Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and George Sanders. The two play a married couple in the film and travel to Naples to sell a villa they’ve inherited. The time together during their travels forces the couple to confront the problems of their marriage, including complex feelings of detachment and dissatisfaction.
Despite being a black-and-white film, the beauty of filming locations such as Naples, Pompeii, and the Amalfi Coast still manages to seep through.It’s no wonder the movie is considered a timeless classic that has inspired many filmmakers over the years.
House of Gucci
If you prefer a film that is a little less “sleepy” than some of the others on this list, you might enjoy this crime thriller based on the real-life tumultuous history and dramatic events surrounding the rise and fall of the Gucci family dynasty.
The movie centers around Maurizio Gucci, the grandson of Guccio Gucci, who founded the luxury fashion brand. House of Gucci was filmed across various locations in Italy such as Rome, Milan, Tuscany, and the picturesque Lake Como.
Only You
A classic romantic comedy from the 90s, Only You is a lighthearted, fun, and heartwarming watch, featuring a young Marisa Tomei and Robert Downy Jr. The picturesque Italian locations featured in the movie add to the romance. It was filmed across many different Italian cities and regions, including Venice, Rome, Tuscany, and Positano.
Luca
From Disney-Pixar, Luca is a 2021 animated fantasy film set in a fictional Italian town! The movie revolves around Luca, a young “sea monster” who lives beneath the sea. Much like The Little Mermaid, Luca is highly curious about the human world.
To his delight and surprise, he finds out that he’s able to take on a human appearance when he ventures to the surface! Luca develops a friendship with a fellow sea monster Alberto, and the duo begins adventures on land.While it’s based in a fictional town that doesn’t exist in real life, the creative team of Luca drew inspiration from various real-life locations along the Italian Riviera such as the villages of Cinque Terre, Portofino, as well as the Amalfi Coast.
