at National Gallery of Art
Pasolini’s alleged favorite among his works is this madcap fable featuring the incomparable “prince of laughter” Totò, young comic actor Ninetto Davoli, and an officious talking crow who recites a tale of two friars (also Totò and Ninetto) asked by Saint Francis to preach a doctrine of love to the overbearing hawks and lowly sparrows of the field. The three travelers ramble around the countryside, seeing only a defiled and dreary landscape, abused by the greed of industrial society. Ennio Morricone’s score features the great singer-songwriter Domenico Modugno (Volare) vocalizing the opening credits in a teasingly self-mocking style.
Italy – 1966, black and white, 89 min.
Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini
Film in Italian with English subtitles
TRAILER (via YouTube)
MORE INFO:
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ON PIER PAOLO PASOLINI
Pier Paolo Pasolini (1922–1975)—radical poet, philosopher, painter, intellectual, novelist, and filmmaker—would have been 90 years old this year. Controversial during his lifetime for his dissident views on Italian politics and contemporary culture, he is now recognized as a visionary, a creative thinker whose writings continue to influence European writers, politicians, and intellectuals.
MORE AT NGA ABOUT PASOLINI:
From Giotto to Pasolini: Narrative in Fresco and Film
December 15 at 4:00PM
East Building Concourse, Auditorium
Illustrated discussion by David Gariff
Art historian and lecturer David Gariff discusses the life and career of Pier Paolo Pasolini focusing on his use of Italian medieval and Renaissance painting. “What I see in my mind,” said Pasolini, “are the frescoes of Giotto and Masaccio. I cannot conceive any [film] image, landscape, or composition outside the 14th century.” (Approximately 50 minutes)
La Rabbia: The Rage of Pasolini
December 29 at 3:30PM
East Building Concourse, Auditorium
Washington premiere
This 1963 feature essay—a collagelike compilation of moments caught on newsreels, including the revolution in Cuba, workers at a Fiat plant, floods in Europe, even the death of Marilyn Monroe—was stripped of its radical undertone when producer Gastone Ferrante added a section featuring conservative ideologue Giovanni Guareschi. In 2008, 45 years after its release (and 30 years after the filmmaker’s death), Giuseppe Bertolucci recaptured his friend’s original purpose by reconstructing a new version from Pasolini’s notes and original dialogue transcript. (1963–2008, 35 mm, Italian with subtitles, 84 minutes) Restoration from Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna.
LOCATION:
East Building Concourse, Auditorium
National Gallery of Art
401 Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20565