''Camilla'' is a

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

comedy-drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

directed by

Luciano Emmer Luciano Emmer (19 January 1918 – 16 September 2009) was an Italian film director. He was born in Milan, but most of his childhood lived in Venice. He started as filmmaker at filming Giotto's frescoes in Padua in 1938. Screenwriter Sergi ...

Plot

Camilla Busin, a middle-aged Venetian widow, arrives in Rome to take up service as a maid for the Rossetti family, consisting of Mario, a health care physician, his wife Giovanna and their children Andrea and Cristina. The economic conditions of the Rossetti are not prosperous and this causes tensions and disagreements. Furthermore, the Rossettis hang out with Gianni, an intrusive, rude family friend who is often involved in unclear affairs, who lives without being married with the succubus Donatella. Mario tries to advance his career by preparing an exam to obtain a more remunerative qualification, but his studies are listless and are made difficult by family tensions, caused by the difficulty of maintaining the desired standard of living. Camilla, with her discreet but sure presence, also made up of popular wisdom, is an element of cohesion for the family and manages to give serenity especially to children. The family tensions lead Mario to alcohol abuse and to court Paola, an old flame of his revisited after many years, in turn unaware of Gianni's casual approaches towards his wife. Gianni also offers Mario a new business: the launch of Swiss diet products in Italy. The case seems to help the two when Mario's neighbor asks him for medical intervention due to an illness of her lover, a wealthy Milanese businessman. He declares himself willing to finance the company, but during the banquet that should sanction the agreement with the Swiss producer, and in which the products destined for commerce are served, everyone feels sick. The deal fades miserably. This failure seems to make everyone find a new serenity. The Rossetti family is convinced to assume a standard of living more suited to their means, Mario breaks off relations with Gianni who finally agrees to marry Donatella. Camilla then decides to stay in Rome, her son gets engaged to a maid who works in the same building. She, too, now seems more inclined to accept the discreet court of a bricklayer of her age who works in a nearby construction site.

Distribution

The films were presented at the Italian Film Festival which took place in London from 25 to 31 October 1954.

Cast

Gabriele Ferzetti Gabriele Ferzetti (born Pasquale Ferzetti; 17 March 1925 – 2 December 2015) was an Italian actor with more than 160 credits across film, television, and stage. His career was at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s. Ferzetti's first leading role ...

: Dr. Mario Rossetti *

Franco Fabrizi Franco Fabrizi (; 15 February 1916 – 18 October 1995) was an Italian actor. Life and career Son of a barber and a cinema cashier, Franco Fabrizi started his career as a model and an actor in fotoromanzi. Fabrizi also starred on several rev ...

: Gianni *

Luciana Angiolillo Luciana Angiolillo (22 December 1925 – 30 November 2014) was an Italian actress and model, known for her career in peplum classic films. Life and career Born Luciana Nevi in Rome, Angiolillo started her career as a runway model. She made he ...

: Giovanna Rossetti *

Irène Tunc Irène Tunc (25 September 1935 – 16 January 1972) was a French actress and model. She was crowned Miss France in 1954. She was the wife of film director Alain Cavalier and she died in a car crash in 1972. She appeared in 35 films and telev ...

: Donatella *

Gina Busin Gina or GINA or ''variation'' may refer to: Gina Gina may refer to: * Gina (given name), multiple individuals * Gina (Canaan), a town in ancient Canaan * Arihant (Jainism), also called gina, a term for a human who has conquered his or her inner p ...

: Camilla Busin *

Dina Perbellini Dina Perbellini (14 January, 1901–2 April, 1984) was an Italian actress. She appeared in over sixty films and television series between 1934 and 1969 and was also a leading voice actress, dubbing foreign films for release in Italy. She made her ...

: Vicina di casa

References

External links

* 1954 films 1954 comedy-drama films Italian comedy-drama films Films directed by Luciano Emmer Italian black-and-white films 1950s Italian films {{1950s-comedy-drama-film-stub