''Friends for Life'' ( it, Amici per la pelle also known as ''Amis pour la vie'' in France) is a 1955

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 ...

and French comedy-drama film directed by Franco Rossi. It was nominated for "Best Film" at the 10th British Academy Film Awards.

Plot

Rome. Mario is a self-confident fourteen-year-old boy who is in eighth grade. One day a new pupil arrives in class, Franco, who is placed by the teacher in Mario's desk. Mario is initially hostile towards the newcomer, who immediately proves to be an intelligent boy and soon enters the good graces of his classmates and professors. After some time, however, the two boys begin to meet and make friends. Mario is the son of a ceramics entrepreneur, while Franco is the son of a diplomat, he lives in a hotel and drinks tomato juice for an aperitif. While Mario shows confidence in approaching the girls, Franco is hesitant and only after a certain insistence on Mario's part is it discovered that the child has a person in his heart and also confides in him where he lives, exactly in a villa on the Via Appia, but he says also that he never sees her because he never leaves the house. He describes her as "Ingrid Bergman with black hair". One day Mario decides not to go to school and intrigued by his friend's story, he goes to the villa to find out who this girl is. He will discover that the villa is Franco's old house, where his mother had died. Returning to his friend to talk to him about it, he initially reacts badly but then returns to his old house in the company of his friend and then bursts into a liberating cry. The two become friends so much that the decision is made that Franco will go and live with Mario's family, to have a somewhat stable life. Then, on the other hand, the two boys participate in the national cross-country championships: during the races they find themselves against each other in the final. The race is won by Franco: Mario, angry, tells his companions about Franco's mother, to whom he had sworn to keep the secret. Franco pretends to be physically ill to hide his deep disappointment with Mario, and then decides to leave with his father, never to return.

Cast

Geronimo Meynier Geronimo Meynier (5 July 1941 – 23 January 2021) was an Italian film actor who starred in Italian cinema of the 1950s and 1960s. He debuted in ''Amici per la pelle'' in 1955 at age 14. His last film was in 1968. The Italian actor Geronimo Meyn ...

... Mario * Andrea Sciré ... Franco *

Vera Carmi Vera Carmi (23 November 1914 – 6 September 1969) was an Italian film actress. She appeared in more than 50 films between 1940 and 1956. She was born in Turin, Italy and died in Rome, Italy. Life and career Carmi was born Virginia Doglioli ...

... La madre di Mario *

Luigi Tosi Luigi Tosi ( Verona 15 July 1915 – Roma 12 March 1989) was an Italian actor. He appeared in more than seventy films from 1944 to 1965. Filmography References External links * 1915 births 1989 deaths Italian male film actors ...

... Il padre di Mario *

Carlo Tamberlani Carlo Tamberlani (11 March 1899 – 5 August 1980) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 127 films between 1931 and 1976. He was born in Salice Salentino, Italy and died in Subiaco, Italy. His brother Nando Tamberlani was also an actor. ...

... Il padre di Franco * Paolo Ferrara.. Professore Martinelli *

Marcella Rovena Marcella Rovena (22 January 1905 – 6 October 1991) was an Italian film and voice actress. Born in Conegliano, she started her career on the big screen in 1932 with director Nunzio Malasomma Nunzio Malasomma (4 February 1894 – 12 J ...

... Professoressa di inglese * Leonilde Montesi ... Professoressa di latino *

Ignazio Leone Ignazio Leone (19 April 1923 – 30 December 1976) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 105 films between 1952 and 1976. Selected filmography * '' The Walk'' (1953) * '' I Chose Love'' (1953) * ''Amici per la pelle'' (1955) * '' A Wom ...

... Professore di ginnastica * Maria Chiara Bettinali ... Margherita * Isabella Nobili ... Alunna * Renata Bousquet ... Alunna * Roberto Illuminati ... Alunno * Emilio Telve... Alunno *Angelo Bizzoni ... Alunno *Vittorio Casali ... Alunno *Giancarlo Margheriti ... Alunno *Giancarlo Tiburzi ... Alunno

References

External links

* 1955 films 1955 comedy-drama films Films scored by Nino Rota 1950s Italian-language films Films directed by Franco Rossi Films set in Rome Italian black-and-white films French black-and-white films French comedy-drama films Italian comedy-drama films 1950s Italian films 1950s French films {{1950s-Italy-film-stub