La Legge (1959)
Directed by Jules Dassin

Film Synopsis

In a tavern in the Italian coastal town of Porto Monacore a group of men are playing the traditional but cruel 'game of the law'.  He who wins the game can subject the losers to whatever humiliations he wishes.  Once again the winner is crime boss Matteo Brigante, who intends to impose his law beyond the limits of the game.  The only one who stands up to him is Don Cesare, a ruined but most respected godfather.  While Brigante's son Francesco pursues an affair with the wife of Judge Alessandro, Donna Lucrezia, Brigante has his mind set on conquering  the wild but desirable Marietta, one of Don Cesare's maids, but she has other plans.  Marietta's dream is to marry Enrico Tosso, a young agronomist who has recently arrived in the village.  She decides to seize the opportunity to escape with Enrico to a foreign country, even if it means putting in danger the established order and defying the law...