I girasoli (1970)

Director:

Vittorio De Sica

Writers:

Tonino Guerra (writer)
Giorgi Mdivani (writer)

Release Date:

24 September 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Filmed in Russia from the Kremlin to the Ukraine.

Plot:

An Italian woman conducts a desperate search for her husband, a soldier considered missing in action in Russia - like fifty thousand others during WWII.

Plot Keywords:

Russian Front | Soldier | Flashback | Factory Worker | Bigamy

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Sophia Loren	...	Giovanna
Marcello Mastroianni	...	Antonio
Lyudmila Savelyeva	...	Mascia
Galina Andreyeva	...	Valentina, Soviet official
Anna Carena	...	Antonio's Mother
Germano Longo	...	Ettore
Nadya Serednichenko	...	Woman in sunflower fields
Glauco Onorato	...	Returning soldier
Silvano Tranquilli	...	Italian worker in Russia
Marisa Traversi	...	Prostitute
Gunars Cilinskis	...	Russian Ministry Official
Carlo Ponti Jr.	...	Giovanna's Baby
Pippo Starnazza	...	Man of Enquiry Office
Dino Peretti
Giorgio Basso

Also Known As:

Les fleurs du soleil (France)
Sunflower (USA)

Runtime:

101 min | Portugal:98 min (cut version)

Country:

Italy | France | Soviet Union

Language:

Italian | English | Russian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Finland:S | USA:G

Filming Locations:

Bereguardo, Pavia, Lombardia, Italy

Company:

Compagnia Cinematografica Champion

Movie Connections:

Referenced in El abrazo partido (2004)

Love, Hope, Truth and Renounce

In Naples, in World War II, the local Giovanna (Sophia Loren) has a torrid love affair with the soldier Antonio (Marcello Mastroianni), who is ready to embark to Africa. Giovanna proposes him to get married with her to get a leave of twelve days; then Antonio pretends that he is insane and he is sent to an asylum. However, the doctors discover the farce and they give the option to Antonio to go to the Russian front as volunteer instead of being sued. When Antonio is missing in action in Russia, Giovanna does not accept that he is dead. Years after the end of the war, Giovanna travels to Russia with a picture of Antonio to seek him out in the countryside. When she finds a lead in a village, her hope becomes disappointment with truth about his disappearance.

"I Girasoli" is one of the most famous romances of cinema and discloses a beautiful story of love, hope, truth and renounce. Vittorio De Sica explores the chemistry between Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni to the best, supported by a magnificent cinematography and the wonderful soundtrack of Henry Mancini, which certainly is among the most beautiful ones of the cinema history. The screenplay uses much ellipsis, and my remarks are the lack of dates, leaving the viewer without any reference of how many years have passed; further, the dialogs in Russian that are not translated. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Os Girassóis da Rússia" ("The Russia's Sunflowers")