Maddalena, zero in condotta (1940)
Directed by Vittorio De Sica

Comedy / Romance

Film Review

In the decade before he won international recognition as one of the masters of Italian neo-realism, Vittorio De Sica cut his directorial teeth making modest crowd-pleasers such as this.  De Sica was not only a great director but was also a talented actor and plays the lead male role in this film.  Maddalena, zero in condotta may not bear comparison with the director's subsequent masterworks Sciuscià (1946) and Ladri di biciclette (1948) but it is a diverting rom-com, with some enchanting performances and some delicious comedy.
© James Travers 2009
The above content is owned by frenchfilms.org and must not be copied.
Next Vittorio De Sica film:
Un garibaldino al convento (1942)

Film Synopsis

Elisa Malgari is a newly recruited teacher in a business school for young women.  Teased by her pupils, Elisa begins to dislike her job and finds solace in the letters she writes to a fictitious Alfredo Hartman.  One of her letters finds its way into the hands of one of her pupils, Maddalena Lenci, who decides to post it, believing it to be a genuine love letter.  As luck would have it, there is such a man as Alfredo Hartman, and when he receives the letter he is curious to know who sent it to him...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by frenchfilms.org and must not be copied.


Film Credits

  • Director: Vittorio De Sica
  • Script: Ferruccio Biancini, Aldo De Benedetti (dialogue), Vittorio De Sica (dialogue), László Kádár (play), Sergio Pugliese (dialogue)
  • Cinematographer: Mario Albertelli
  • Music: Nuccio Fiorda
  • Cast: Vittorio De Sica (Alfredo Hartman), Vera Bergman (L'insegnate Elisa Malgari), Carla Del Poggio (Maddalena Lenci), Irasema Dilián (Eva Barta), Amelia Chellini (La direttrice), Pina Renzi (La professoressa Varzi), Paola Veneroni (L'allieva Varghetti), Dora Bini (L'allieva Caricati), Enza Delbi (Un' allieva), Roberto Villa (Stefano Armani), Armando Migliari (Malesci), Guglielmo Barnabò (Il signore Emilio Lenci), Giuseppe Varni (Amilcare Bondani), Arturo Bragaglia (Sila), Pia Attanasio Fioretti (La signora Lenci), Gina Cinquini (La signora Bondani), Irma Corelli (L'allieva Silvestri), Alda Grimaldi (Un' allieva), Lina Marengo (La professoressa di geografica), Livia Minelli (La cameriera di casa Lenci)
  • Country: Italy
  • Language: Italian
  • Support: Black and White
  • Runtime: 79 min

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