''The White Ship'' (Italian: ''La nave bianca'') is a 1941 Italian

war film War film is a film genre concerned with warfare, typically about naval, air, or land battles, with combat scenes central to the drama. It has been strongly associated with the 20th century. The fateful nature of battle scenes means that war fi ...

directed by

Roberto Rossellini Roberto Gastone Zeffiro Rossellini (8 May 1906 – 3 June 1977) was an Italian film director, producer, and screenwriter. He was one of the most prominent directors of the Italian neorealist cinema, contributing to the movement with films such ...

. Its cast was made up entirely of

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

actors, many of them the real crew of a

hospital ship A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. ...

of the Italian navy. The production was a work of propaganda intended to support the war aims of the Fascist Italian regime during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. It was made with the close co-operation of the

Italian Navy "Fatherland and Honour" , patron = , colors = , colors_label = , march = ( is the return of soldiers to their barrack, or sailors to their ship after a ...

, particularly

Francesco De Robertis Francesco De Robertis (1902–1959) was an Italian screenwriter, film editor and director. His semi-documentary film-making style of the early 1940s has been credited as an influence on the development of Italian neorealism.Bondanella, p. 32 Sele ...

Vittorio Mussolini Vittorio Mussolini (27 September 1916 – 12 June 1997) was an Italian film critic and producer. He was also the second child of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. However, he was the first officially acknowledged son of Mussolini, with his secon ...

, the son of the Italian dictator, was also a supporter of the project. It was the first

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

directed by Rossellini, and commenced what has been described as his "Fascist Trilogy" which also includes ''

A Pilot Returns ''A Pilot Returns'' (Italian: ''Un pilota ritorna'') is a 1942 Italian war film directed by Roberto Rossellini and starring Massimo Girotti, Michela Belmonte and Piero Lulli. The film forms part of Rossellini's "Fascist trilogy" along with '' The ...

'' (1942) and ''

The Man with a Cross ''The Man with a Cross'' ( it, L'uomo dalla croce) is a 1943 Italian war film directed by Roberto Rossellini and starring Alberto Tavazzi, Roswita Schmidt and Attilio Dottesio. It was the final part of Rossellini's "Fascist trilogy" following '' ...

'' (1943). Along with a number of other films of the era, it is considered a precursor to

Italian neorealism Italian neorealism ( it, Neorealismo), also known as the Golden Age, is a national film movement characterized by stories set amongst the poor and the working class. They are filmed on location, frequently with non-professional actors. They pri ...

. Rossellini went on to be a leading Italian filmmaker, and a major figure in the development of neorealism. The film was screened at the 1941

Venice Film Festival The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival ( it, Mostra Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica della Biennale di Venezia, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival he ...

, before going on general release the following year. Because of this 1941 and 1942 are both often cited as its release date. It was awarded the Cup of the

National Fascist Party The National Fascist Party ( it, Partito Nazionale Fascista, PNF) was a political party in Italy, created by Benito Mussolini as the political expression of Italian Fascism and as a reorganization of the previous Italian Fasces of Combat. The ...

at Venice.

Synopsis

A young Italian sailor falls in love with a schoolteacher before returning to service on a warship. During the

Battle of Cape Teulada The Battle of Cape Spartivento, known as the Battle of Cape Teulada in Italy, was a naval battle during the Battle of the Mediterranean in the Second World War, fought between naval forces of the Royal Navy and the Italian '' Regia Marina'' on ...

against the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

, he is wounded and transferred to a hospital ship. There he is reunited with his lover, who is now working as a nurse.

References

Bibliography

* Bondanella, Peter. ''The Films of Roberto Rossellini''. Cambridge University Press, 1993.

External links

* 1941 films Italian war drama films Italian black-and-white films 1940s war drama films 1940s Italian-language films Films directed by Roberto Rossellini Seafaring films World War II films made in wartime Films set in the Mediterranean Sea 1941 drama films Films scored by Renzo Rossellini Italian World War II films 1940s Italian films {{1940s-Italy-film-stub