I magliari

Co-written by Cecchi d’Amico, Rosi’s gritty and atmospheric second feature is a tale mired in the increasingly borderless, itinerant and opportunistic world of post-war Europe. Alberto Sordi stars as an Italian travelling salesman attempting to “swindle” his German customers by fraudulently selling them inferior cloth. Meeting up with a naïve fellow Italian he proceeds to teach him the ropes. Mostly shot on location in Hanover and Hamburg, Rosi’s richly detailed drama is a fascinating portrait of class, nationality, the “economic miracle” of post-war Germany and the less certain fate of its wartime ally.

35mm print courtesy of Cinecittà Luce.

Presented in partnership with the Italian Cultural Institute.