The Lion of St. Mark
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''The Lion of St. Mark'' ( it, Il Leone di San Marco) is a 1963 Italian
adventure film An adventure film is a form of adventure fiction, and is a genre of film. Subgenres of adventure films include swashbuckler films, pirate films, and survival films. Adventure films may also be combined with other film genres such as action, an ...
co-written and directed by
Luigi Capuano Luigi Capuano (13 July 1904 – 20 October 1979) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. Born in Naples, he directed 43 films between 1947 and 1971. Selected filmography * ''Vertigine d'amore'' (1949) * ''Flying Squadron (film), Flyin ...
.


Plot

Venice, about 1620. The
Doge A doge ( , ; plural dogi or doges) was an elected lord and head of state in several Italian city-states, notably Venice and Genoa, during the medieval and renaissance periods. Such states are referred to as " crowned republics". Etymology The ...
attends a nightly ball to celebrate the betrothal of his son Manrico with Lady Isabella Fiesci and his appointment as ambassador at the royal court of France. Manrico, a patriot and soldier at heart, is not delighted about this
arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures a professional matchmaker may be us ...
, and Gualtiero, his uncle and the Doge's brother-in-law, supports him against his father's opinion. The party is suddenly raided by a gang of
Skok Skok (Cyrillic: Скок) is a Slovenian, Croatian, Belarusian, Ukrainian and Russian surname derived from the Slavic word skok for "leap, jump" or more precisely the Slovene word skočiti for "to jump, to leap" that has its highest density i ...
ian pirates led by Titta and his mate Rossana, who strip the guests of their valuables. Angered by the pirates' boldness and the inability of Venice's mercenary troops under Captain Ostenburg to catch them, Manrico assembles his friends and organizes his own armed resistance movement, assuming the masked identity of The Lion of Saint Mark, after the symbol of Venice. Manrico leads several successful sorties against the pirates, becoming a symbol of hope for the Venetians. One night, Ostenburg discovers one of the pirates' camps and captures Rossana, while Titta escapes. Manrico, who has fallen in love with Rossana, persuades Ostenburg to entrust her to his supervision, and then releases her, which wins him her affection. Her successful "escape", however, makes Titta suspect her, and when she leaves to meet Manrico at a prearranged date, he sends his lieutenant Vipera after her, who thus finds out about her liaison and identifies Manrico. For the upcoming Feast of the Redeemer celebrations, Titta plans for himself, Rossana and Vipera to infiltrate the Fieschi's ball - to which Rossana was invited by Manrico - and kidnap Manrico to bow the Doge and the people of Venice to his will. At the ball, Manrico appears dressed in his masked identity, pretending it is merely a costume for the festivities. When he and Rossana meet, she warns him about Titta's plan. Ostenburg recognizes Rossana and arrests her despite Manrico and Gualtiero's intervention. Just as she is about to be led away, Manrico's best friend Jandolo, disguised as the Lion of Saint Mark, bursts in and spirits her away, according to Manrico's plan. Titta and his men follow her and Manrico to her temporary refuge on
Torcello Torcello ( la, Torcellum; vec, Torceło) is a sparsely populated island at the northern end of the Venetian Lagoon, in north-eastern Italy. It was first settled in 452 CE and has been referred to as the parent island from which Venice was p ...
, only to run into an ambush. After the pirates have fled, Manrico confesses to Rossana that he is the Lion of Saint Mark, and disgusted, Rossana declines his offer to marry him and rejoins Titta. After receiving reinforcements, Ostenburg prepares to attack the pirates' stronghold in
Ragusa Ragusa is the historical name of Dubrovnik. It may also refer to: Places Croatia * the Republic of Ragusa (or Republic of Dubrovnik), the maritime city-state of Ragusa * Cavtat (historically ' in Italian), a town in Dubrovnik-Neretva County, Cro ...
from the seaside. Determined to make this a Venetian victory, and to save Rossana, Manrico intends to infiltrate the castle from the landward side and blast a breach into the wall for his friends (including Gualtiero, who has long found out Manrico's secret identity). As they prepare their attack, the infiltrators are discovered and the element of surprise is lost. While Manrico and the rest of his team barricade themselves in, Ostenburg's troops attack. Rossana, having finally chosen Manrico's side, lights a fuse to the
powder magazine Powder Magazine, Powder House, or Powderworks may refer to: *Powder tower or powder house, a building used to store gunpowder or explosives; common until the 20th century *Gunpowder magazine, a building designed to store gunpowder in wooden barrels ...
, creating the breach through which Manrico's allies can attack and overwhelm Titta and his pirates. To forestall her punishment for piracy by the Doge, Gualtiero adopts Rossana as his daughter, thus allowing her and Manrico to get married.


Cast

*
Gordon Scott Gordon Scott (born Gordon Merrill Werschkul; August 3, 1926 – April 30, 2007) was an American film and television actor known for his portrayal of the fictional character Tarzan in five films (and one compilation of three made-as-a ...
as Manrico Masiero *
Gianna Maria Canale Gianna Maria Canale (12 September 1927 – 13 February 2009) was an Italian film actress. Biography Canale was born in 1927 in Reggio Calabria. In 1947, she competed in the Miss Italia beauty contest, where she was runner-up to Lucia Bo ...
as Rossana *
Alberto Farnese Alberto Farnese (3 June 1926 – 2 June 1996) was an Italian actor. He appeared in more than 80 films and television shows between 1951 and 1989. He starred in the film ''Whom God Forgives'', which won the Silver Bear Extraordinary Prize of ...
as Titta *
Giulio Marchetti Giulio Marchetti (9 June 1911 – 1 December 1993) was an Italian stage, film and television actor and presenter. Life and career Born in Barcelona, Marchetti was the grandson of the operetta actor and comedian Giulio and the son of the theatr ...
as Gualtiero *
Rik Battaglia Rik Battaglia (byname of Caterino Bertaglia; 18 February 1927 – 27 March 2015) was an Italian film actor. He was born at Corbola, near Rovigo, Veneto. He mainly used the stage name of Rik Battaglia although alternate names he used for his fi ...
as Jandolo *
Franco Fantasia Franco Fantasia (5 March 1924 – 10 November 2002) was an Italian film actor, stuntman and fencing master. He appeared in more than one hundred films from 1951 to 2002. He was the brother of actor Andrea Fantasia. Illness and Death September ...
as Vipera *
Franca Bettoia Franca Bettoia (or Bettoja; born 14 May 1936) is an Italian actress. Life and career Born in Rome, she made her first film appearance in ''Un palco all'opera ''(1955, by Siro Marcellini). The following year she appeared in ''Los amantes del de ...
as Isabella Fieschi *
Feodor Chaliapin Jr. Feodor Chaliapin Jr. (russian: Фёдор Фёдорович Шаля́пин; 6 October 1905 – 17 September 1992) was a Russian Empire-born actor who appeared in many American and Italian films. Life Chaliapin was the son and namesake of t ...
as The Doge *
Giulio Maculani Giulio Maculani (7 August 1920 – 21 November 1980) was an Italian actor, stunt actor and assistant director. She appeared in '' Il Leone di San Marco'' (1963), directed by Luigi Capuano. and in western films such as '' Un poker di pistole'' (1 ...
as Captain Ostenburg


References


External links

* 1963 films 1960s adventure films 1960s Italian films 1960s Italian-language films Films directed by Luigi Capuano Films scored by Carlo Rustichelli Italian adventure films {{1960s-Italy-film-stub