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The Barefoot Contessa

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Cinecittà Studios ( pronounced [ˌtʃinetʃitˈta] ; Italian for Cinema City Studios ) is a large film studio in Rome , Italy . With an area of 400,000 square metres (99 acres), it is the largest film studio in Europe , and is considered the hub of Italian cinema . The studios were constructed during the Fascist era as part of a plan to revive the Italian film industry.

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53-493: The Barefoot Contessa is a 1954 American drama film written and directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz about the life and loves of fictional Spanish sex symbol Maria Vargas. It stars Ava Gardner , Humphrey Bogart , and Edmond O'Brien . The plot focuses on social positioning and high-powered politics within the world of film and high society. For his performance, O'Brien won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and

106-480: A "grotesque barren film" about the "glittering and graceless behavior of the Hollywood-international set." However, François Truffaut wrote: "what is beyond doubt is its total sincerity, novelty, daring, and fascination ... I myself accept and value it for its freshness, intelligence, and beauty ... A subtle and intelligent film, beautifully directed and acted." In 1998, Jonathan Rosenbaum of

159-462: A better understanding of the film. According to the taxonomy, combining the type with the genre does not create a separate genre. For instance, the "Horror Drama" is simply a dramatic horror film (as opposed to a comedic horror film). "Horror Drama" is not a genre separate from the horror genre or the drama type. Crime dramas explore themes of truth, justice, and freedom, and contain the fundamental dichotomy of "criminal vs. lawman". Crime films make

212-427: A film. Looking for a glamorous leading lady, they go from Rome to a Madrid night club to see a dancer named Maria Vargas. Maria is a blithe but proud spirit who likes to go barefoot and has a troubled home life. Maria immediately likes Harry, whose work she knows, but takes an instant dislike to Kirk. Although she flees during their meeting, Harry tracks her down to her family home and convinces her to fly with them to

265-685: A more central component of the story, along with serious content.  Examples include Three Colours: White (1994), The Truman Show (1998), The Man Without a Past (2002), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011), and Silver Linings Playbook (2012). Coined by film professor Ken Dancyger , these stories exaggerate characters and situations to the point of becoming fable, legend or fairy tale.  Examples: Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) and Maleficent (2014). Light dramas are light-hearted stories that are, nevertheless, serious in nature.  Examples: The Help (2011) and The Terminal (2004). Psychological dramas are dramas that focus on

318-400: A particular setting or subject matter, or they combine a drama's otherwise serious tone with elements that encourage a broader range of moods . To these ends, a primary element in a drama is the occurrence of conflict —emotional, social, or otherwise—and its resolution in the course of the storyline. All forms of cinema or television that involve fictional stories are forms of drama in

371-633: A person's life and raises their level of importance. The "small things in life" feel as important to the protagonist (and the audience) as the climactic battle in an action film, or the final shootout in a western.  Often, the protagonists deal with multiple, overlapping issues in the course of the film – just as we do in life.  Films of this type/genre combination include: The Wrestler (2008), Fruitvale Station (2013), and Locke (2013). Romantic dramas are films with central themes that reinforce our beliefs about love (e.g.: themes such as "love at first sight", "love conquers all", or "there

424-557: A production designer who has won three Academy Awards . Visitors enter Cinecittà World through the jaws of the Temple of Moloch, seen in Cabiria , a silent movie filmed in Turin in 1914. The theme park also features a recreation of 1920s-era Manhattan as envisioned by Ferretti. Cinecittà World expects to have 1.5 million visitors annually. Expansion plans for the theme park include

477-401: A solution that appalls Harry: she has become pregnant by another man. She believes Vincenzo will welcome this child in order to perpetuate the family lineage. Harry warns her Vincenzo is too proud to accept this, but Maria feels otherwise and plans to tell him about her pregnancy that night. After Maria leaves his hotel room, Harry notices Vincenzo's car trailing hers, and follows them. Back at

530-464: A specific approach to drama but, rather, consider drama as a lack of comedic techniques.  Examples: Ghost World (2001) and Wuthering Heights (2011). According to the Screenwriters' Taxonomy, all film descriptions should contain their type (comedy or drama) combined with one (or more) of the eleven super-genres. This combination does not create a separate genre, but rather, provides

583-526: Is a final fight to the death; the idea of the protagonists facing death is a central expectation in a war drama film. In a war film even though the enemy may out-number, or out-power, the hero, we assume that the enemy can be defeated if only the hero can figure out how.   Examples include: Apocalypse Now (1979), Come and See (1985), Braveheart (1995), Life Is Beautiful (1997), Black Book (2006), The Hurt Locker (2008), 1944 (2015), Wildeye (2015), and 1917 (2019). Films in

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636-569: Is a limited-edition release of 3000 copies.` Drama (film and television) In film and television , drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction ) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-genre, macro-genre, or micro-genre, such as soap opera , police crime drama , political drama , legal drama , historical drama , domestic drama , teen drama , and comedy-drama (dramedy). These terms tend to indicate

689-524: Is a problem, however: the count and his sister are the last of the Torlato-Favrinis; without offspring, the noble line will die out. The count is impotent due to a war injury, but he does not tell Maria about this until their wedding night. On a rainy night, months later, with Harry in Italy, an unhappy Maria arrives at his hotel room and tells him about her husband's impotence. She has come up with

742-722: Is no longer in operation, opened in 1975 and was named after the film. A tour boat in the TV series Riptide was named Barefoot Contessa . Parts of the movie were featured in Lana Del Rey 's music video for " Carmen ". The VHS from MGM was first released in 1990 and again in 1999 as part of the Vintage Classics lineup. MGM also released the DVD version in 2001. On December 13, 2016, Twilight Time Movies released The Barefoot Contessa on high-definition Blu-ray. This release

795-421: Is someone out there for everyone"); the story typically revolves around characters falling into (and out of, and back into) love. Annie Hall (1977), The Notebook (2004), Carol (2015), Her (2013) , and La La Land (2016) are examples of romance dramas. The science fiction drama film is often the story of a protagonist (and their allies) facing something "unknown" that has the potential to change

848-622: Is that in a documentary it uses real people to describe history or current events; in a docudrama it uses professionally trained actors to play the roles in the current event, that is "dramatized" a bit. Examples: Black Mass (2015) and Zodiac (2007). Unlike docudramas, docu-fictional films combine documentary and fiction, where actual footage or real events are intermingled with recreated scenes. Examples: Interior. Leather Bar (2013) and Your Name Here (2015). Many otherwise serious productions have humorous scenes and characters intended to provide comic relief . A comedy drama has humor as

901-582: The Chicago Reader included the film in his unranked list of the best American films not included on the AFI Top 100 . The May 1955 issue of Mad (#23) has a parody by Jack Davis entitled "The Barefoot Nocountessa". The Food Network cooking show Barefoot Contessa is named after Ina Garten's best-selling cookbook, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook , which in turn was named after her specialty food store which she bought in 1978. The store, which

954-650: The Battle of Zama . During World War II it became a German army barracks and was stripped of all electrical equipment with its sound stages smashed and gutted. The studios were bombed by the Western Allies during the bombing of Rome in World War II . Following the war, between 1945 and 1947, the studios of Cinecittà were used as a displaced persons ' camp for a period of about two years, following German occupation and Allied bombing that destroyed parts of

1007-471: The Monte Carlo Casino , Alberto goes on a losing streak and berates Maria in public for ruining his luck. Count Vincenzo Torlato-Favrini slaps him in the face, then escorts Maria from the casino. Maria stays with Vincenzo and his widowed sister, Eleanora, at the count's palazzo. She has found the great love of her life, and they wed in a lavish ceremony, in which Harry gives away the bride. There

1060-476: The corresponding Golden Globe . Mankiewicz was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay . The majority of the film is explained by Harry Dawes (Bogart), narrating the events, with additional sections narrated by Oscar Muldoon (O'Brien) and Count Vincenzo Torlato-Favrini (Brazzi). Down on his luck, washed-up movie director and screenwriter Harry Dawes is reduced to working for business tycoon Kirk Edwards, who has decided that he wants to produce

1113-763: The western super-genre often take place in the American Southwest or Mexico, with a large number of scenes occurring outdoors so we can soak in scenic landscapes. Visceral expectations for the audience include fistfights, gunplay, and chase scenes. There is also the expectation of spectacular panoramic images of the countryside including sunsets, wide open landscapes, and endless deserts and sky.   Examples of western dramas include: True Grit (1969) and its 2010 remake , Mad Max (1979), Unforgiven (1992), No Country for Old Men (2007), Django Unchained (2012), Hell or High Water (2016), and Logan (2017). Some film categories that use

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1166-559: The 1950s, the number of international productions being made there led to Rome being dubbed " Hollywood on the Tiber ." The studios were founded in 1937 by Benito Mussolini , his son Vittorio , and his head of cinema Luigi Freddi under the slogan " Il cinema è l'arma più forte " ("Cinema is the most powerful weapon"). The purpose was not only for propaganda, but also to support the recovering Italian feature film industry, which had reached its low point in 1931. Mussolini himself inaugurated

1219-493: The Apes (1968), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Blade Runner (1982) and its sequel Blade Runner 2049 (2017), Children of Men (2006), Interstellar (2014), and Arrival (2016). In the sports super-genre, characters will be playing sports. Thematically, the story is often one of "Our Team" versus "Their Team"; their team will always try to win, and our team will show the world that they deserve recognition or redemption;

1272-587: The Book VI of his television series Kaamelott set in Ancient Rome . More recently, Paolo Sorrentino 's series The Young Pope and The New Pope were almost entirely shot at Cinecittà, including reconstruction of the interiors of the Sistine Chapel and Saint Peter's Basilica . The 2019 film The Two Popes sections of which were also shot at Cinecittà, again utilised a reconstruction of

1325-644: The Gulf War and mounting tensions in Yugoslavia, RAI decided to move the contest from Sanremo to Rome which was perceived to be more secure. After a period of near- bankruptcy , the Italian Government privatized Cinecittà in 1997, selling an 80% stake. On August 9, 2007, a fire destroyed about 3,000 m (32,000 sq. ft.) of the Cinecittà lot and surroundings. The historic part that houses

1378-703: The Italian version of Big Brother , where the Big Brother house is built on Cinecittà's premises. The complex also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 1991 . In addition, the BBC / HBO series Rome was filmed there from 2004 to 2007, the show being widely acclaimed for its sets and designs. BBC Wales reused some of these sets for an episode of the 2008 series of Doctor Who set in ancient Pompeii , and Alexandre Astier reused this set for

1431-532: The Sistine Chapel. In 2009 the studio announced that they intended to create a theme park. The movie-themed amusement park, Cinecittà World , opened in July 2014. The € 250 million theme park is located approximately 25 km (16 mi) southwest of Cinecittà studios, on the site of a former movie studio built by Dino De Laurentiis in the 1960s. Cinecittà World was designed by Dante Ferretti ,

1484-529: The Tiber , was the location for several large American film productions , like Roman Holiday (1953), Beat the Devil (1953), The Barefoot Contessa (1954), Ben-Hur (1959), and some low-budget action pictures starring Lex Barker . Barker also featured in Federico Fellini 's La Dolce Vita (1960) and the studios were for many years closely associated with Fellini. In the same period,

1537-566: The United States to make her first film. Thanks to his expertise and the help of sweaty, insincere publicist Oscar Muldoon, her film debut is a sensation. Maria becomes an overnight star and Harry's career is resurrected; they become friends and make two more films together. During a party at Maria's house, Kirk and wealthy Latin American playboy Alberto Bravano get into an argument over Maria. Alberto had conspicuously admired Maria during

1590-407: The audience jump through a series of mental "hoops"; it is not uncommon for the crime drama to use verbal gymnastics to keep the audience and the protagonist on their toes.   Examples of crime dramas include: The Godfather (1972), Chinatown (1974), Goodfellas (1990), The Usual Suspects (1995), The Big Short (2015), and Udta Punjab (2016). According to Eric R. Williams ,

1643-451: The audio commentary on the 1931 film Tabu , she was based on Anne Chevalier , an actress in that film. The Barefoot Contessa is considered one of Mankiewicz's most glamorous "Hollywood" films, and one of the most glamorous of Golden Hollywood, but it was produced out of Cinecittà Studios in Rome. Exterior scenes were shot at Tivoli (the olive grove), Sanremo , and Portofino . Bogart

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1696-412: The broader sense if their storytelling is achieved by means of actors who represent ( mimesis ) characters . In this broader sense, drama is a mode distinct from novels, short stories , and narrative poetry or songs . In the modern era, before the birth of cinema or television, "drama" within theatre was a type of play that was neither a comedy nor a tragedy . It is this narrower sense that

1749-533: The characters' inner life and psychological problems. Examples: Requiem for a Dream (2000), Oldboy (2003), Babel (2006), Whiplash (2014), and Anomalisa (2015) Satire can involve humor, but the result is typically sharp social commentary that is anything but funny. Satire often uses irony or exaggeration to expose faults in society or individuals that influence social ideology.  Examples: Thank You for Smoking (2005) and Idiocracy (2006). Straight drama applies to those that do not attempt

1802-473: The course of the film. Thematically, horror films often serve as morality tales, with the killer serving up violent penance for the victims' past sins.  Metaphorically, these become battles of Good vs. Evil or Purity vs. Sin.  Psycho (1960), Halloween (1978), The Shining (1980), The Conjuring (2013), It (2017), mother! (2017), and Hereditary (2018) are examples of horror drama films. Day-in-the-life films takes small events in

1855-501: The evening. When Alberto invites her to join him on his yacht in the Riviera, Kirk orders her to stay away from him. Offended by Kirk's attempted domineering, she accepts Alberto's invitation. Also seeing an opportunity, Oscar, tired of being Kirk's lackey, switches his allegiance to Alberto. Maria is now a great star, but she is not satisfied. She envies the happiness her friend Harry has found with his script girl Jerry. One evening at

1908-481: The family as a whole reacts to a central challenge. There are four micro-genres for the family drama: Family Bond , Family Feud , Family Loss , and Family Rift . A sub-type of drama films that uses plots that appeal to the heightened emotions of the audience. Melodramatic plots often deal with "crises of human emotion, failed romance or friendship, strained familial situations, tragedy, illness, neuroses, or emotional and physical hardship". Film critics sometimes use

1961-409: The film and television industries, along with film studies , adopted. " Radio drama " has been used in both senses—originally transmitted in a live performance, it has also been used to describe the more high-brow and serious end of the dramatic output of radio . The Screenwriters Taxonomy contends that film genres are fundamentally based upon a film's atmosphere, character and story, and therefore

2014-416: The future of humanity; this unknown may be represented by a villain with incomprehensible powers, a creature we do not understand, or a scientific scenario that threatens to change the world; the science fiction story forces the audience to consider the nature of human beings, the confines of time or space or the concepts of human existence in general. Examples include: Metropolis (1927), Planet of

2067-416: The hallmark of fantasy drama films is "a sense of wonderment, typically played out in a visually intense world inhabited by mythic creatures, magic or superhuman characters. Props and costumes within these films often belie a sense of mythology and folklore – whether ancient, futuristic, or other-worldly. The costumes, as well as the exotic world, reflect the personal, inner struggles that the hero faces in

2120-408: The labels "drama" and "comedy" are too broad to be considered a genre. Instead, the taxonomy contends that film dramas are a "Type" of film; listing at least ten different sub-types of film and television drama. Docudramas are dramatized adaptations of real-life events. While not always completely accurate, the general facts are more-or-less true. The difference between a docudrama and a documentary

2173-702: The legal system. Films that focus on dramatic events in history. Focuses on doctors, nurses, hospital staff, and ambulance saving victims and the interactions of their daily lives. Focuses on teenage characters, especially where a secondary school setting plays a role. Cinecitt%C3%A0 Studios Filmmakers such as Federico Fellini , Roberto Rossellini , Luchino Visconti , Sergio Leone , Bernardo Bertolucci , Francis Ford Coppola , Martin Scorsese , and Mel Gibson have worked at Cinecittà. More than 3,000 movies have been filmed there, of which 90 received an Academy Award nomination and 47 of these won it. In

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2226-540: The palazzo in the servants' quarters, Vincenzo shoots to death both Maria and her lover before she can tell him about the child. Harry arrives just as the shots are fired. He does not tell Vincenzo about the pregnancy. The story ends, as it began, with flashbacks at her funeral. Afterward, Vincenzo is taken away by the police. According to Turner Classic Movies , Mankiewicz based the film's central character of Maria Vargas on American movie star and dancer Rita Hayworth , who had been married to Prince Aly Khan . According to

2279-459: The sequel to The Old Guard . Since the 1990s, films have included Anthony Minghella 's The English Patient (1996) and The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Martin Scorsese 's Gangs of New York (2002), Wes Anderson 's The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) and Mel Gibson ’s The Passion of the Christ (2004). Cinecittà also hosts TV productions, such as Grande Fratello ,

2332-519: The sets of classics such as Ben-Hur was not damaged; however, a good portion of the original sets from the HBO/BBC series Rome was destroyed. In July 2012, another fire damaged Teatro 5, the vast studio where Fellini filmed La Dolce Vita and Satyricon (1969). A third fire in August 2022 destroyed part of a partially dismantled set depicting Renaissance-era Florence and disrupted filming of

2385-534: The story does not always have to involve a team. The story could also be about an individual athlete or the story could focus on an individual playing on a team. Examples of this genre/type include:  The Hustler (1961), Hoosiers (1986), Remember the Titans (2000), and Moneyball (2011). War films typically tells the story of a small group of isolated individuals who – one by one – get killed (literally or metaphorically) by an outside force until there

2438-525: The story." Examples of fantasy dramas include The Lord of the Rings (2001–2003), Pan's Labyrinth (2006), Where the Wild Things Are (2009), and Life of Pi (2012). Horror dramas often involve the central characters isolated from the rest of society. These characters are often teenagers or people in their early twenties (the genre's central audience) and are eventually killed off during

2491-461: The studio. An estimated 3,000 refugees lived there, divided into two camps: an Italian camp housing Italians as well as displaced people from Italian Libya and Dalmatia, and an international camp, including refugees from Yugoslavia, Poland, Egypt, Iran, and China. After rebuilding in the postwar years by MGM's Henry Henigson for Quo Vadis , the studios were used once again for their post-production facilities. Cinecittà, described as Hollywood on

2544-404: The studios on 21 April 1937. Post-production units and sets were constructed and heavily used initially. Early films such as Scipio Africanus (1937) and The Iron Crown (1941) showcased the technological advancement of the studios. Seven thousand people were involved in the filming of the battle scene from Scipio Africanus , and live elephants were brought in as a part of the re-enactment of

2597-461: The studios were used for further international productions such as Francis of Assisi (1961), Cleopatra (1963), The Agony and the Ecstasy (1965), Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet (1968), Fellini's Casanova (1976), La Traviata (1982) and many other productions. It hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 1991 . This was the 36th Eurovision Song Contest and was held on Stage 15. Due to

2650-578: The term "pejoratively to connote an unrealistic, pathos-filled, camp tale of romance or domestic situations with stereotypical characters (often including a central female character) that would directly appeal to feminine audiences". Also called "women's movies", "weepies", tearjerkers, or "chick flicks". If they are targeted to a male audience, then they are called "guy cry" films. Often considered "soap-opera" drama. Focuses on religious characters, mystery play, beliefs, and respect. Character development based on themes involving criminals, law enforcement and

2703-498: The word "comedy" or "drama" are not recognized by the Screenwriters Taxonomy as either a film genre or a film type. For instance, "Melodrama" and "Screwball Comedy" are considered Pathways,  while "romantic comedy" and "family drama" are macro-genres. A macro-genre in the Screenwriters Taxonomy. These films tell a story in which many of the central characters are related. The story revolves around how

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2756-480: Was "one of the most breathtaking creatures on earth". Some critics disapproved of the film; the book Feature Cinema in the 20th Century: Volume One: 1913–1950: a Comprehensive Guide called the film "dreadful", remarking that Mankiewicz's "intelligence and ambitious aims too often collide with an astonishing lack of subtlety and aesthetic judgment". Bosley Crowther in The New York Times described it as

2809-447: Was not on location at Sanremo. The film's Italian production was part of the " Hollywood on the Tiber " phenomenon. The studio was about to release the film's poster without an image of Bogart, a contractual violation. Bogart had the matter rectified with the addition of a line drawing of his face. The film was praised by many critics for its extravagance, which earned the director many new admirers. Saturday Review stated Ava Gardner

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