Mamma Roma
Mamma Roma • 1h 46m
Directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini • 1962 • Italy
Starring Anna Magnani, Ettore Garofolo, Franco Citti
Anna Magnani is Mamma Roma, a middle-aged prostitute who attempts to extricate herself from her sordid past for the sake of her son. Filmed in the great tradition of Italian neorealism, MAMMA ROMA offers an unflinching look at the struggle for survival in postwar Italy, and highlights director Pier Paolo Pasolini’s lifelong fascination with the marginalized and dispossessed. Though banned upon its release in Italy for obscenity, today MAMMA ROMA remains a classic, featuring a powerhouse performance by one of cinema’s greatest actresses and offering a glimpse at a country’s most controversial director in the process of finding his style.
Up Next in Mamma Roma
-
Bernardo Bertolucci on MAMMA ROMA
Filmmaker Bernardo Bertolucci began as a production assistant to Pier Paolo Pasolini on Pasolini’s first film, ACCATTONE (1961). This interview with Bertolucci was conducted in 2004.
-
Tonino Delli Colli on MAMMA ROMA
Tonino Delli Colli worked as director of photography on eleven of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s fourteen films, beginning with ACCATTONE and concluding with the director’s final film, SALO (1975). This interview with him was recorded in 2004.
-
Enzo Siciliano on MAMMA ROMA
This interview with Enzo Siciliano, author of “Pasolini” (1982), was conducted in 2004.
