The Melbourne Cinémathèque & ACMI present
Conversation Piece
When
Wed 10 May 2023
A reclusive retired professor rents the upper floor of his luxurious palazzo to an aristocratic family who bring chaos, vulgarity, soap-opera intrigues and much-needed life to his musty existence. Visconti’s first film after his stroke is an intimate chamber piece that turns Lancaster (who previously collaborated with Visconti on The Leopard) into something of a director surrogate, his melancholic ambivalence regarding contemporary politics, art and his own impending mortality reflecting Visconti’s perceived position as the product of a bygone era. With Helmut Berger and Silvana Mangano.
35mm print courtesy of Cinecittà Luce.
Also screening on Wed 10 May
Program
Soft and Hard: The high-wire career of Burt Lancaster
Sweet Smell of Success (1957) – Wed 3 May, 7pm
The Crimson Pirate (1952) – Wed 3 May, 8.55pm
The Swimmer (1968) – Wed 10 May, 7pm
Conversation Piece (1974) – Wed 10 May, 8.50pm
Criss Cross (1949) – Wed 17 May, 7pm
The Train (1964) – Wed 17 May, 8.40pm
About the program
Burt Lancaster (1913–94) didn’t appear in his first film until he was in her early thirties. Prior to his breakthrough role alongside Ava Gardner in The Killers (1946), he had a highly successful career as a circus acrobat and as an entertainer in the Special Forces during World War II...
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About Melbourne Cinémathèque
Australia's longest-running film society, Melbourne Cinémathèque screens significant works of international cinema in the medium they were created, the way they would have originally screened.
Melbourne Cinémathèque is self-administered, volunteer-run, not-for-profit and membership-driven.
