''Open Doors'' ( it, Porte aperte) is a 1990 Italian film directed by

Gianni Amelio Gianni Amelio (born 20 January 1945) is an Italian film director. Early life Amelio was born in San Pietro di Magisano, province of Catanzaro, Calabria. His father moved to Argentina soon after his birth. He spent his youth and adolescence with h ...

. Set in Palermo in the 1930s, a judge who is morally against the death penalty is confronted with the case of a man who has murdered his wife and two colleagues in cold blood. Opposed by both the fascist government - endorsing death penalty since it allows people to be safe to the point of "sleeping at night with open doors" - and public opinion, he struggles to do what he believes is right. Based on a 1987 novel, " Porte Aperte", by

Leonardo Sciascia Leonardo Sciascia (; 8 January 1921 – 20 November 1989) was an Italian writer, novelist, essayist, playwright, and politician. Some of his works have been made into films, including '' Porte Aperte'' (1990; ''Open Doors''), ''Cadaveri Eccellent ...

. The film was selected as the Italian 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

63rd Academy Awards The 63rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 25, 1991, at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles beginning at 6:00 p.m. PST / 9:00 p.m. EST. During the ce ...

Plot

The film opens with a Fascist bureaucrat, recently fired, killing the man who fired him, the man who replaced him, and his wife.

Cast

* Gian Maria Volonté as Judge Vito di Francesco *

Ennio Fantastichini Ennio Fantastichini (20 February 1955 – 1 December 2018) was an Italian actor. Life and career Born in Gallese, province of Viterbo, Fantastichini studied acting at the Accademia Nazionale di Arte Drammatica Silvio D'Amico. His breakout role ...

as Tommasco Scalia *

Renato Carpentieri Renato Carpentieri (born 2 April 1943) is an Italian actor, stage director and playwright. Life and career Born in Savignano Irpino, Avellino, Carpentieri studied architecture in Naples, where from 1965 to 1974 he was engaged in the organizatio ...

as Consolo *

Tuccio Musumeci Tuccio Musumeci (born 20 April 1934) is an Italian actor and comedian. Life and career Born in Catania, Musumeci started his career in the 1960s, performing in local cabarets and avanspettacolo companies.Santino Mirabella. ''In scena - conver ...

as Spatafora *

Silverio Blasi Silverio Blasi (17 November 1921 – 27 April 1995) was an Italian television and stage director, actor and screenwriter. Born in Rome, Blasi was co-founder, together with Giorgio De Lullo, Goliarda Sapienza and Mario Landi, of the avant ...

as Attorney * Vitalba Andrea as Rosa Scalia * Giacomo Piperno as Prosecutor * Lydia Alfonsi as Marchesa Anna Pironti *

Renzo Giovampietro Renzo Giovampietro (23 June 1924 – 10 March 2006) was an Italian actor, theatre director and playwright. Life and career Born in Velletri, Rome, the son of a carpenter and of a cook, in 1944 Giovampietro enrolled at the Silvio d’Ami ...

as President Sanna

Awards

Won

* 1991 David di Donatello: **Best Actor - Gian Maria Volonté **Best Costume Design - Gianna Gissi **Best Film **Best Sound - Remo Ugolinelli *

3rd European Film Awards The 3rd Annual European Film Awards were given out in 1990. Winners and nominees Bold indicates winner in the category. European Film * ''Porte aperte'' (''Open Doors'') * ''Cyrano de Bergerac'' * '' Matj'' (''Mother'') * '' Przesluchani ...

: **Best Cinematography **Best Film **Discovery of the Year Award -

*Italian Golden Globes: **Best Actor - Gian Maria Volonté **Best Film **Best Screenplay *

Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists The Nastro d'Argento, also known by its translated name Silver Ribbon, is an Italian film award awarded each year since 1946 by the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists (Italian: ''Sindacato Nazionale Giornalisti Cinematografici Italiani ...

**Best Director **Best Supporting Actor - Ennio Fantastichini *Montpellier Mediterranean Film Festival **Critics Award - Gianni Amelio **Golden Antigone - Gianni Amelio

Nominated

: **Best Foreign Language Film *1991 David di Donatello: **Best Cinematography - Tonino Nardi **Best Director -

**Best Editing - Simona Paggi **Best Producer - Angelo Rizzoli Jr. **Best Production Design - Amedeo Fago, Franco Velchi **Best Screenplay -

, Vincenzo Cerami **Best Supporting Actor -

: **Special Prize of the Jury - Gian Maria Volonté *

**Best Actor - Gian Maria Volonté **Best Screenplay

References

External links

* * 1990 films 1990 drama films Courtroom films Films about capital punishment Films based on Italian novels European Film Awards winners (films) Films based on works by Leonardo Sciascia Films directed by Gianni Amelio Films set in Sicily Films set in the 1930s Italian drama films 1990s Italian-language films Films with screenplays by Vincenzo Cerami 1990s Italian films {{1990s-Italy-film-stub