Teaching code

4S011764

Teacher

Denis Lotti

Coordinator

Denis Lotti

Credits

1

Also offered in courses:

• Squadristi in celluloid. The march on Rome between documentary and fiction of the course Bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies
• Squadristi in celluloid. The march on Rome between documentary and fiction of the course Master’s degree in Publishing and Journalism

Language

Italian

Scientific Disciplinary Sector (SSD)

NN - -

Period

1 B dal Nov 14, 2022 al Dec 22, 2022.

Lessons timetable Moodle Seminars 0

Learning objectives

Final relation

Prerequisites and basic notions

Frequency

Program

Squadristi in celluloid The march on Rome between documentary and fiction. Screening of films To us! (1922) and The March on Rome (1962) To us! With the Blackshirts from the festival of Naples to the conquest of Rome Italy 1922. Film "from life" directed by Umberto Paradisi. Production of the National Fascist Party. Duration 38 minutes. Full projection of the film "from life" which documents the journey of the fascist maniples from Naples to Rome. The documentary is divided into three chapters. On 24 October 1922 the steps leading to the massing of the black shirts in Piazza del Plebiscito in Naples were resumed. Rome, 28 and 29 October: the squadristi are shown while they are simulating a state of siege at the gates of the capital. October 30: the king grants the fascists entry into Rome, the film documents the parade of the black shirts that crosses Piazza del Popolo and the presence of Benito Mussolini, who arrived at night from Milan. The lens, in sequence, portrays the so-called quadrumvirs, the parade along Corso Umberto, the homage at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the demonstration to the king in Piazza del Quirinale. The film (silent edition, without musical accompaniment) will be commented by Denis Lotti (Professor of Cinema, Photography and Television at the University of Verona) who will then propose a comparison between A noi! and the "live" Gloria - Apotheosis of the Unknown Soldier produced in 1921 by the Italian Film Federation and the Phototechnical Union. Gloria stages the journey of the body of the Unknown Soldier starting from the ceremony inside the Basilica of Aquileia up to the burial at the Vittoriano. The cinematic "format" of Gloria seems to inspire - for narrative structure, themes, style and quotations - To us!, but to the mourning of the nation, expressed by the composed homage of the crowd portrayed along the journey of the body of the unnamed soldier, in the " from life” of the march on Rome will be replaced by the myth of the strength and victory of the Great War, as well as the mirage of a new Italy led by the National Fascist Party. The March on Rome Italy 1962. Directed by Dino Risi, with Vittorio Gassman, Ugo Tognazzi, Mario Brega. Cecchi Gori production. Duration 94 minutes. Domenico Rocchetti (Gassman) and Umberto Gavazza (Tognazzi) are veterans of the Great War. Losers with no prospects, they both find themselves serving in the fascist squads more for convenience than for ideology. Gradually the political and demonstrative actions in which they participate turn into brawls; just during some scuffles they hit a policeman and for this reason they end up in prison. They are freed by the squadristi a couple of years later and, having learned that the fascist party wants to take power by force, they decide to participate in the imminent march on Rome. In reality, for both, the mirage of a future job or any personal economic advantage is increasingly important. But the illusion lasts until Rocchetti and Gavazza see the true face of fascism emerge. In particular Gavazza, increasingly skeptical and disappointed, canceled one by one the promises made in the party program and frustrated by objective reality. Arriving at the gates of Rome, they witness terrified a bloody event in which an innocent man loses his life at the hands of the fascists. Frightened, Gavazza decides to leave the team, but is discovered by Mitraglia (Brega), leader of the group and unscrupulous assassin, who attacks the fugitive with violence. Rocchetti's decisive intervention – who stuns the violent man – saves his friend, earning escape for both. A few days later, the now former squadristi, dressed in jackets and ties, observe the parade of the black shirts in front of the Quirinale palace, an evident prelude to the inauguration of the Mussolini regime. The film, screened in its entirety, will be presented by Alberto Scandola, professor of cinema, photography and television at the University of Verona.

Didactic methods

Frontal lesson

Learning assessment procedures

Written report

Evaluation criteria

Eligibility

Criteria for the composition of the final grade

Eligibility

Exam language

Italiano