TRIBUTES AND RETROSPECTIVES
From our Correspondent |
Slap the Monster on Page One
Sbatti il mostro in prima pagina
Marco Bellocchio
1972 - Italy / France - 1h26
In a particularly explosive political context, Bizanti, the editor of Il Giornale, a conservative Milan newspaper, exploits a sordid sex case to discredit the Left.
After criticising the role of religion in Nel Nome del Padre (In the Name of the Father) (1971), Marco Bellocchio continued in his overtly political discourse with Sbatti il mostro in prima pagina (Slap the Monster on the Front Page) (1972). Gian Maria Volonté portrays a cynical character comparable to the one he played in Elio Petri's Indagine su un cittadino al di sopra di ogni sospetto (Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion) (1970). With an almost documentary-like approach, the film exposes the collusion between capitalism, a certain press and the police. He highlights what was called the “strategy of tension” designed deliberately to create a climate of political violence with an aim to encouraging the emergence of an authoritarian State.
CAST AND CREW
Cast : Gian Maria Volontè, Fabio Garriba, Carla Tatò, Jacques Herlin, John Steiner, Michel Bardinet, Jean Rougeul, Corrado Solari, Laura Betti
Screenplay : Sergio Donati
Cinematography : Luigi Kuveiller , Erico Menczer
Sound : Gaetano Testa
Editing : Ruggero Mastroianni
Music : Nicola Piovani
Production : Jupiter Generale Cinematografica, UTI Produzioni Associate, Labrador Films
French distributor : Editions Montparnasse