Sheds new light on the notion of Italian identity as it is understood by the national cinemaCombines Film Studies with the Mobilities FrameworkLooks at previously unexplored facets of Amedeo Nazzari's and Alberto Sordi's careersExplores a variety of physical, ideological and social 'borders' in the 'cinematic bodies' of Nazzari and SordiStudying the careers of popular actors Amedeo Nazzari and Alberto Sordi, Acting Across Borders explores the question of how Italian cinema from the 1930s to 1980s has considered human mobility. Through close readings of a selection of films, Alberto Zambenedetti examines the concept of italianit (Italian-ness) as manifested in contexts related to migration, diaspora, exile, tourism, travel and their supporting infrastructures. In this wide-ranging study, the methodologies of Film Studies and the Mobilities Framework are combined to illuminate an undertheorised yet vital tradition in the history of the national cinema.
Alberto Zambenedetti is Assistant Professor in the Department of Italian Studies, University of Toronto
List of Figures Acknowledgements Introduction: Acting Across Borders PART ONE: AMEDEO NAZZARIIntroduction to Part One: Amedeo Nazzari’s Many Im/mobilities 1: Flying: Empire Cinema’s (Aero)Mobilities 2: Returning: Im/mobility and Immigrant’s Nostalgia 3: Fighting: Wartime Im/mobility in Harlem 4: Romancing: Postwar Im/mobilities in Raffaello Matarazzo’s Melodramas 5: Migrating: The Pathology of Im/mobility Conclusion: Driving the Flâneuse: Le notti di CabiriaPART TWO: ALBERTO SORDIIntroduction to Part Two: Alberto Sordi’s Comic Mobilities 1: Vacationing: The Rise of the Travelling Comedian 2: Working: ‘L’Italia è una Repubblica Democratica, fondata sul lavoro’ 3: Killing: Criminal Mobilities 4: Exploring: Italian Identity Abroad 5: Drilling: (Auto)Mobile Satires of Global Petroculture Conclusion: Driving Across (Screen) Borders Filmography Bibliography Index
There is much to praise in Acting across Borders. The book’s analytical thrust provides a fresh look at two widely studied figures in Italian cinema and paves the way for further future research [...] the book will be welcomed by readers interested in Italian cinema and cultural history.