Luigi Magni (21 March 1928 – 27 October 2013) was an Italian screenwriter and film director.

Life and career

Born in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Magni started his career as a screenwriter, in 1956, with ''

Tempo di villeggiatura ''Time of Vacation'' ( it, Tempo di villeggiatura) is a 1956 Italian comedy film directed by Antonio Racioppi, at his directorial debut. For this film Marisa Merlini won a Silver Ribbon for Best supporting Actress. Plot In a hotel in Cornio ...

''. In 1968 he collaborated with

Mario Monicelli Mario Alberto Ettore Monicelli (; 16 May 1915 – 29 November 2010) was an Italian film director and screenwriter and one of the masters of the ''Commedia all'Italiana'' (Comedy Italian style). He was nominated six times for an Oscar, and was awa ...

in creating a real "event" of the Italian cinema by transforming

Monica Vitti Monica Vitti (born Maria Luisa Ceciarelli; 3 November 1931 – 2 February 2022) was an Italian actress who starred in several award-winning films directed by Michelangelo Antonioni during the 1960s. After working with Antonioni, Vitti changed f ...

into a comedic actress with ''

The Girl with the Pistol ''The Girl with the Pistol'' ( it, La ragazza con la pistola) is a 1968 Italian comedy film directed by Mario Monicelli. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Monica Vitti won the David di Donatello as Best Actr ...

'', and the critical and commercial success of the film pushed him into directing. After the directorial debut with '' Faustina'' (which was also the debut film of

Vonetta McGee Vonetta Lawrence McGee (January 14, 1945 – July 9, 2010) was an American actress. She debuted in the Spaghetti Western ''The Great Silence'' and went on to appear in blaxploitation films such as ''Hammer'', ''Melinda'', ''Blacula'', ''Shaft ...

), in 1969 Magni achieved an extraordinary success with ''

Nell'anno del Signore ''The Conspirators'' (Italian: ''Nell'anno del Signore'') is a 1969 Italian historical film, historical comedy drama film written and directed by Luigi Magni and starring Nino Manfredi, Enrico Maria Salerno and Claudia Cardinale. It is based on th ...

'', which was the highest-grossing Italian film of the year, so as to require for the first time in Italy nighttime screenings to meet the demands of the audience. The film marked the encounter with

Nino Manfredi Saturnino "Nino" Manfredi (22 March 1921 – 4 June 2004) was an Italian actor, voice actor, director, screenwriter, playwright, comedian, singer, author, radio personality and television presenter. He was one of the most prominent Italian a ...

, with whom Magni had a long-standing association on the set (including the screenplay of Manfredi's award-winning film '' Per Grazia Ricevuta'') and a close friendship off the set. The film also defined Magni's style, namely a

commedia all'italiana Commedia all'italiana (, pl. Commedie all'italiana, "Comedy in the Italian way") or Italian-style comedy is an Italian film genre born in Italy in the 1950s and developed in the 1960s and 1970s. It is widely considered to have started with Mari ...

mainly centred on Rome and its history, particularly the epoch between the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

and the

Risorgimento The unification of Italy ( it, Unità d'Italia ), also known as the ''Risorgimento'' (, ; ), was the 19th-century political and social movement that resulted in the consolidation of different states of the Italian Peninsula into a single ...

. In 1977 Magni achieved critical recognition with '' In nome del Papa Re'', which also gave him his first

David di Donatello Award The David di Donatello Awards, named after Donatello's ''David'', a symbolic statue of the Italian Renaissance, are film awards given out each year by the '' Accademia del Cinema Italiano'' (The Academy of Italian Cinema). There are 26 award ca ...

. He received a second David di Donatello in 1995, for the screenplay of '' Nemici d'infanzia'', and a special David di Donatello Lifetime Career Award in 2008. In 1991 he was a member of the jury at the

17th Moscow International Film Festival The 17th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 8 to 19 July 1991. The Golden St. George was awarded to the Soviet-German film ''Spotted Dog Running at the Edge of the Sea'' directed by Karen Gevorkian. Jury * Oleg Yankovsky (Soviet Un ...

. After the 2003 TV movie ''La notte di Pasquino'', a sort of sequel of ''

'' still with Nino Manfredi as the main actor, and with the death of Manfredi in 2004, Magni retired from cinema. He died in Rome, on 27 October 2013.

Filmography

Screenwriter

*''

La cambiale ''La cambiale'' is a 1959 Italian comedy film directed by Camillo Mastrocinque. Plot Commander Bruscatelli, before being imprisoned, leaves the Posalaquaglia cousins a bill of exchange which they give to Temistocle Bisogni in compensation for t ...

'' (1959) *'' Il corazziere'' (1960) *''

Gli attendenti ''The Orderly'' ( it, Gli attendenti) is a 1961 Italian comedy film directed by Giorgio Bianchi. Cast * Vittorio De Sica: Colonel Filippo Bitossi * Renato Rascel: Remigio De Acutis * Dorian Gray: Lauretta * Gino Cervi: Maggiore Penna * Did ...

'' (1961) *''

Il mio amico Benito ''Il mio amico Benito'' (Italian for "My friend Benito") is a 1962 commedia all'italiana film directed by Giorgio Bianchi. Plot Peppino Di Gennaro is a simple clerk who wants to make a career without success. After a friend gave him a photo tak ...

'' (1962) *''

In Italia si chiama amore IN, In or in may refer to: Places * India (country code IN) * Indiana, United States (postal code IN) * Ingolstadt, Germany (license plate code IN) * In, Russia, a town in the Jewish Autonomous Oblast Businesses and organizations * Independ ...

'' (1963) *''

Un tentativo sentimentale ''A Sentimental Attempt'' ( it, Un tentativo sentimentale) is a 1963 Italian comedy film. It stars actor Gabriele Ferzetti. It was a Black & White feature film telecast in 1963. Cast * Fraçoise Prévost: Carla * Jean-Marc Bory: Dino * Letíc ...

'' (1964) *''

Le voci bianche ''White Voices'' ( it, Le voci bianche) is a 1964 Italian comedy film directed by Pasquale Festa Campanile and Massimo Franciosa. It was screened out of competition at the 1964 Cannes Film Festival. Cast * Paolo Ferrari as Meo * Sandra Milo as ...

'' (1964) *'' Extraconiugale'' (1964) *'' La Celestina P... R...'' (1964) *''

Le bambole ''Le bambole'' (U.S. title: ''The Dolls'', UK title: ''Four Kinds of Love'') is a 1965 Italian comedy film in four segments; starring Nino Manfredi, Virna Lisi, Elke Sommer, and Mario Montuori. The four vignettes—The Telephone Call (La telef ...

'' (1965) *''

La Mandragola ''The Mandrake'' (Italian: ''La Mandragola'' ) is a satirical play by Italian Renaissance philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli. Although the five-act comedy was published in 1524 and first performed in the carnival season of 1526, Machiavelli likel ...

'' (1965) *''

Madamigella Di Maupin ''Madamigella di Maupin'' is a 1966 Italian adventure film directed by Mauro Bolognini. It is loosely based on the life of Mademoiselle de Maupin and the novel with the same name by Théophile Gautier. Cast * Catherine Spaak as Magdeleine d ...

'' (1965) *'' Le fate'' (1966) *'' Non faccio la guerra, faccio l'amore'' (1966) *''

El Greco Domḗnikos Theotokópoulos ( el, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco ("The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El G ...

'' (1966) *'' La cintura di castità'' (1967) *''

Le streghe ''The Witches'' ( it, Le streghe) is a 1967 ''commedia all'italiana'' anthology film produced by Dino De Laurentiis in 1965. It consists of five comic stories, directed by Luchino Visconti, Franco Rossi, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Mauro Bolognini a ...

'' (1967) *'' Il marito è mio e l'ammazzo quando mi pare'' (1967) *'' La ragazza con la pistola'' (1968) *'' Faustina'' (1968) *''

'' (1969) *''

Scipione detto anche l'Africano ''Scipio the African'' ( it, Scipione detto anche l'Africano "Scipio, also called the African") is a 1971 Italian comedy film directed by Luigi Magni. Plot Years after the Second Punic War, Scipio Africanus finds himself generally unliked, desp ...

'' (1971) *'' Per grazia ricevuta'' (1973) *''

La Tosca ''La Tosca'' is a five-Act (drama), act drama by the Nineteenth-century theatre, 19th-century Theatre of France, French playwright Victorien Sardou. It was first performed on 24 November 1887 at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin in Paris, wi ...

'' (1973) *'' La via dei babbuini'' (1974) *''

Basta che non si sappia in giro ''Basta che non si sappia in giro'' is a 1976 Italian anthology comedy film directed by Luigi Comencini, Nanni Loy and Luigi Magni. The film obtained a good commercial success. Plot In a triptych of events (the first directed by Loy, the second ...

'' (1976) *'' In nome del Papa Re'' (1977) *'' Arrivano i bersaglieri'' (1980) *''

State buoni se potete ''State buoni se potete'' is a List of Italian films of 1983, 1983 Cinema of Italy, Italian Historical film, historical comedy-drama film written and directed by Luigi Magni. The film is loosely based on real life events of Saint Philip Neri, Fili ...

'' (1983) *'' Secondo Ponzio Pilato'' (1987) *''

'o Re ''O Re'' (also known as ''The King of Naples'') is a 1989 Italian historical film written and directed by Luigi Magni.Franco Montini, Piero Spila, ''Il mondo di Luigi Magni : avventure, sogni e disincanto''. Rai Eri, 2000. . For his performance ...

'' (1989) *''

In nome del popolo sovrano ''In the Name of the Sovereign People'' ( it, In nome del popolo sovrano) is a 1990 Italian historical comedy-drama film written and directed by Luigi Magni. It won the David di Donatello for best costumes. Plot Rome, Papal States, 1849. P ...

'' (1990) *'' Nemici d'infanzia'' (1995) *''

La Carbonara ''La Carbonara'' is a List of Italian films of 2000, 2000 Cinema of Italy, Italian Historical film, historical comedy-drama film written and directed by Luigi Magni.Franco Montini, Piero Spila, ''Il mondo di Luigi Magni : avventure, sogni e disinc ...

'' (2000)

Director

*'' Faustina'' (1968) *''

'' (1969) *''

'' (1971) *''

'' (1973) *'' La via dei babbuini'' (1974) *''

'' (1976) *''

Quelle strane occasioni ''Quelle strane occasioni'', internationally released as ''Strange Occasion'', is a 1976 Italian anthology comedy film directed by Luigi Comencini, Nanni Loy and Luigi Magni. Loy didn't accept to sign his segment, ''Italian Superman'', that resul ...

'' (1976) *'' In nome del Papa Re'' (1977) *''

Signore e signori, buonanotte ''Goodnight, Ladies and Gentlemen'' ( it, Signore e signori, buonanotte, french: Mesdames et messieurs bonsoir) is a 1976 French-Italian satirical comedy anthology film. It comprises twelve episodes on themes of corruption in various Italian ...

'' (1977) *'' Arrivano i bersaglieri'' (1980) *''

'' (1983) *'' L'addio a Enrico Berlinguer'' (1984) *'' Secondo Ponzio Pilato'' (1987) *'' Imago Urbis'' (1987) *''

'' (1989) *''

'' (1990) *'' Nemici d'infanzia'' (1995) *'' Esercizi di stile'' (1996) *''

'' (2000)

References

External links