''March on Rome'' ( it, La marcia su Roma) is a 1962 comedy film by Dino Risi with

Vittorio Gassman Vittorio Gassman (; born Gassmann; 1 September 1922 – 29 June 2000), popularly known as , was an Italian actor, director and screenwriter. He is considered one of the greatest Italian actors, whose career includes both important productions ...

and Ugo Tognazzi, aimed at describing the

March on Rome The March on Rome ( it, Marcia su Roma) was an organized mass demonstration and a coup d'état in October 1922 which resulted in Benito Mussolini's National Fascist Party (PNF) ascending to power in the Kingdom of Italy. In late October 1922, Fa ...

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in 194 ...

blackshirt The Voluntary Militia for National Security ( it, Milizia Volontaria per la Sicurezza Nazionale, MVSN), commonly called the Blackshirts ( it, Camicie Nere, CCNN, singular: ) or (singular: ), was originally the paramilitary wing of the Nation ...

s from the point of view of two newly recruited, naïve blackshirts. The movie's main theme is the gradual betrayal of all the promises 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 ...

: the two gradually tick all the main points of the fascist program as described on a

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

flyer every time they are contradicted by practice. In its early stages fascism was a radical republican movement, suspicious of large businesses, nobility and the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

(Mussolini himself had been a socialist earlier in his career, being cast out of the

Italian Socialist Party The Italian Socialist Party (, PSI) was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy, whose history stretched for longer than a century, making it one of the longest-living parties of the country. Founded in Genoa in 1892, ...

when his nationalism grew more and more pronounced). When arriving in Rome, and having ticked them all off, they leave the fascist party in the moment of its victory.

Plot summary

The film is set in Italy in 1922. Two friends returning from the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Rocchetti and Gavazza, join the Fascist Party in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. While the latter is an opportunist, the former is a Roman Catholic who is persuaded by his friend to join the party, and is convinced by the revolutionary program issued in Piazza San Sepolcro. In October, the two friends join a group of Fascists marching to Rome to take, but during the trip Rocchetti, seeing the behaviour of the fascist officials and the forces which help the party, gradually gives up his hopes about the fascist revolutionary program. When Rocchetti finally tries to escape, he is beaten almost to death. Gavazza saves him, and runs away with his friend. However, the March on Rome is made, and the two friends cannot help but watch in silence as the political change happens. The last scene of the movie shows King Victor Emmanuel III watching from the balcony of the Quirinal Palace the fascists. He then turns to Grand Admiral

Paolo Thaon di Revel Paolo Camillo Thaon, Marquess of Revel (10 June 1859 – 24 March 1948), latterly titled with the honorary title of 1st Duke of the Sea, was an Italian admiral of the ''Regia Marina'' during World War I and later a politician. Early life an ...

and tells him that he is willing to "test the fascists for some months".

Cast

: Domenico Rocchetti * Ugo Tognazzi: Umberto Gavazza * Roger Hanin: Capitano Paolinelli *

Mario Brega is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creat ...

: Marcacci "Mitraglia" * Angela Luce: Contadina *

Giampiero Albertini Giampiero Albertini (20 December 1927 – 14 May 1991) was an Italian film, television and voice actor. Biography Born in Muggiò, Albertini started his career as stage actor at the Piccolo Teatro in Milan, under the guidance of Giorgio Strehle ...

: Cristoforo *

Liù Bosisio Liù Bosisio (born Luigia Bosisio Mauri; 30 January 1936), is an Italian actress and voice actress. Biography Bosisio was born in Milan in the end of January 1936. From 1953 to 1955, She attended the Accademia d'Arte Drammatica in her hometown ...

: Adelina * Daniele Vargas: "Sua Eccellenza" * Howard Nelson Rubinen : Judge Bellinzoni

Quotes

* The expedition is burning down a building of the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of ''The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A ...

. One of the two recruits asks why they are contradicting their declared principles of

freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recogni ...

. The fascist gang leader replies that "They have freedom of speech, we have the freedom of beating them up. If they do not want to speak because they are afraid, so..." * The fascists are victoriously parading in the streets of Rome. A counselor reminds King Victor Emmanuel III that they are still in time to send them away. The King replies "Nah, let's keep them for a few months".

External links

* 1962 films Commedia all'italiana Films directed by Dino Risi 1962 comedy films Films set in Milan Films set in Rome Films with screenplays by Age & Scarpelli Films with screenplays by Ruggero Maccari Films set in 1922 Films scored by Marcello Giombini Lux Film films 1960s Italian-language films 1960s Italian films {{1960s-Italy-comedy-film-stub