''The Night of the Shooting Stars'' (UK: ''The Night of San Lorenzo'', it, La Notte di San Lorenzo) is a 1982 Italian

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Paolo Taviani Paolo Taviani (; born 8 November 1931) and Vittorio Taviani (; 20 September 1929 – 15 April 2018), collectively referred to as the Taviani brothers, were Italian film directors and screenwriters who collaborated on film productions. At the C ...

and

Vittorio Taviani Paolo Taviani (; born 8 November 1931) and Vittorio Taviani (; 20 September 1929 – 15 April 2018), collectively referred to as the Taviani brothers, were Italian film directors and screenwriters who collaborated on film productions. At the C ...

. It was written by Giuliani G. De Negri, Paolo Taviani, Tonino Guerra, and Vittorio Taviani. It was entered into the

1982 Cannes Film Festival The 35th Cannes Film Festival was held from 14 to 26 May 1982. The Palme d'Or was jointly awarded to '' Missing'' by Costa Gavras and ''Yol'' by Şerif Gören and Yılmaz Güney. The festival opened with the 1916 film ''Intolerance'', directed b ...

where it won the Jury Special Grand Prix. The film was selected by Italy as its entry for the

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

55th Academy Awards The 55th Academy Awards were presented April 11, 1983, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles. The ceremonies were presided over by Liza Minnelli, Dudley Moore, Richard Pryor, and Walter Matthau. Louis Gossett Jr. became the first Africa ...

, but was not accepted as a nominee.

Plot

The film opens with a mother telling her sleeping son a story from her childhood. The story recounts how wishes come true when a shooting star occurs. She proceeds to tell the story of the Italian town she once lived in. A man and his pregnant fiancé quickly marry in the church. After their marriage, the family of the bride had a mini celebration. The film follows several inhabitants of an Italian town during the end of World War II. Defeat is certain for the German army, and the front is retreating to Germany, leaving a path of destruction in its wake. The Germans plan to blow up several buildings in the town and have told all the villagers to congregate in the town's church. Approximately half of the town decides to stay and place their trust in the church. The rest of the town dresses in dark clothing to blend in the night. The man joined the retreating group as his wife and her mother stayed in the church. They head out seeking the Americans who were rumored to be nearby, liberating towns as they come to them. The bishop wants to say mass with the townspeople in the church. He finds only two pieces of bread for communion. One of the townspeople mentions that she has a loaf of bread. The bishop asks her, and the rest of the congregation, to divide up their bread so he can bless it and use it instead of the standard

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County People *Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman * Michel Host ...

. While he is performing communion, the

Fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

s explode a bomb in the church, resulting in panic, people fleeing, and many casualties. One wounded girl is seen being carried outside by her mother. It was the man's wife. The bishop tries to help carry the woman but when he realises that he caused the deaths, he drops her and flees. As the mother continues to carry her, the husband returns from his group to be with his wife, but it is too late to save her. The man returns to his group and they continue their trek. They pass a field where partisans are harvesting the grain. The partisans share their complaints that they're replacing the grain stolen by the Fascists. The group had learned on the road that the partisans can help transport people safely to a city away from the Fascists. The group helps the partisans harvest grain. During the day, the group must hide from German planes that fly over at midday while they are threshing. Cecilia, who is telling this story, reveals that, at that night, the shooting stars occurred, but the people were so caught up in the pain and fear that they forgot all about it. In the afternoon of the next day, the group is ambushed by Fascists. During the ambush, the majority of the group are killed. Cecilia watches a Fascist kill her grandfather and mother. As the Fascist comes after Cecilia, she repeats a nonsense rhyme that her mother had taught her to say whenever she is afraid. As she says the lines, an ancient warrior appears with a spear and a shield. The warrior throws the spear and pierces the Fascist's stomach. As the Fascist looks up in surprise, a line of ancient warriors appears and throw their spears, killing the Fascist. The man, Cecilia, and a few other members of the group survive the fight and continue heading to their journey. That night, Galvano, the elderly leader of the group and an older woman from the group share a room, leading them to reveal that they have had feelings for each other since they were young. The mother tells her sleeping son to remember the lines of the rhyme, then the mother is revealed to be Cecilia, the child in the story.

Cast

Omero Antonutti Omero Antonutti (3 August 1935 – 5 November 2019) was an Italian actor and voice actor. Biography Born in Basiliano, in the province of Udine (in the Northeastern Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia), after having worked in shipyard ...

- Galvano *

Margarita Lozano Margarita de las Flores Lozano Jiménez (14 February 1931 – 7 February 2022) was a Spanish actress known for her career in Italian films. She worked for Luis Buñuel in '' Viridiana'', Sergio Leone in ''A Fistful of Dollars'', Pier Paolo Pas ...

- Concetta *

Claudio Bigagli Claudio Bigagli (born 8 December 1955) is an Italian actor. He has appeared in more than 40 films and television shows since 1976. He starred in '' Fiorile'', which was entered into the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. Selected filmography * '' The ...

- Corrado * Miriam Guidelli - Belindia *

Massimo Bonetti Massimo Bonetti (born 28 March 1951) is an Italian actor and director. Life and career Born in Rome, Bonetti after several years as character actor debuted in a leading role in 1981, in Aurelio Chiesa's ''Bim Bum Bam''. Then, he obtained role ...

- Nicola *

Enrica Maria Modugno Enrica Maria Modugno (born 5 August 1958 in Rome) is an Italian actress. She is most noted for her roles in Brothers Taviani's " Kaos" (1984), '' The Mass Is Ended (La messa è finita)'', for which she received a Ciak d'oro nomination for Best Ac ...

- Mara *

Sabina Vannucchi Sabina may refer to: Places and jurisdictions * Sabina (region), region and place in Italy, and hence: * the now Suburbicarian Diocese of Sabina (-Poggio Mirteto), Italy * Magliano Sabina, city, Italy * Pozzaglia Sabina, city, Italy *Fara Sabin ...

- Rosanna * Giorgio Naddi - Bishop * Renata Zamengo - La Scardigli * Micol Guidelli - Cecilia *

Massimo Sarchielli Massimo, also Massimino, and Massimine () is a masculine Italian given name. Notable people with the name include: Given name: *Massimo Agostinelli (Max Agos) (born 1987), Swiss based Italian American artist, entrepreneur and activist *Massimo Ago ...

- Father Marmugi *

Giovanni Guidelli Giovanni may refer to: * Giovanni (name), an Italian male given name and surname * Giovanni (meteorology), a Web interface for users to analyze NASA's gridded data * '' Don Giovanni'', a 1787 opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, based on the legend ...

- Marmugi Junior * Mario Spallino - Bruno *

Paolo Hendel Paolo Hendel (born 2 January 1952) is an Italian actor, playwright and comedian. Life and career Born in Florence, at young age Hendel made several works, including gamekeeper, guardian of a garage and detective.Giorgio Dell’Arti, Massimo Par ...

- Dilvo

Reception

The film was given a rapturous review in ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' by the critic

Pauline Kael Pauline Kael (; June 19, 1919 – September 3, 2001) was an American film critic who wrote for ''The New Yorker'' magazine from 1968 to 1991. Known for her "witty, biting, highly opinionated and sharply focused" reviews, Kael's opinions oft ...

, who wrote, "''The Night of the Shooting Stars'' is so good it's thrilling. This new film encompasses a vision of the world. Comedy, tragedy, vaudeville, melodrama - they're all here, and inseparable...In its feeling and completeness, ''Shooting Stars'' may be close to the rank of

Jean Renoir Jean Renoir (; 15 September 1894 – 12 February 1979) was a French film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and author. As a film director and actor, he made more than forty films from the silent film, silent era to the end of the 1960s. ...

's bafflingly beautiful '' Grande Illusion''...unreality doesn't seem divorced from experience (as it does with

Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...

) - it's experience made more intense...For the Tavianis, as for Cecilia, the search for the American liberators is the time of their lives. For an American audience, the film stirs warm but tormenting memories of a time when we were beloved and were a hopeful people." In July 2018, it was selected to be screened in the Venice Classics section at the 75th Venice International Film Festival.

Soundtrack

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

, " O Star of Eve" from ''

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; gmh, Tanhûser), often stylized, "The Tannhäuser," was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and ...

''The song is sung by a German soldier.

References

External links