Stefania Sandrelli's Jubilee
On June 5, 1946, in Viareggio, Tuscany, Italy, in the family of Florida and Othello Sandrelli, the owners of a small hotel, a daughter Stefania was born. At the age of 14, Stefania won the beauty contest in her hometown. And at the age of 15 she began acting in films.
A lot of publications in the media devoted to Stefania Sandrelli, star and sex symbol of Italian cinema. Laudatory and not very. Certainly, less than, for example, about Marilyn Monroe. Yes, it is understandable: Sandrelli was not the president's mistress. We are not going to do another "analysis" of the work of this Actress. We just want to share memories of our "contact" with this Actress.
The first time I’ve heard the name of Stefania Sandrelli in a conversation of my parents in deep “pink” childhood. In the 1960s, Italian cinema was very popular in the USSR. My parents did not miss a single cinematic novelty, and then discussed the films watched among themselves or with their friends. Here, in these conversations, the names of Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida, Claudia Cardinale sounded ... In the same row there was the name of Stefania Sandrelli.
However, for a while this name remained for me only a name. Films that made Stefania become wildly popular with the Soviet cinema audience of the 60s - “Divorce Italian Style”, “Seduced and Abandoned”, “I Knew Her Well” - that is, films “about love”, did not interested me, at that time 10-year-old boy. Another thing - comedy or "about the Indians." In addition, as a rule, Italian films in our theaters were demonstrated under the heading "Children under 16 are not allowed." And I did not rushed!
As a result, the first time I saw Stefania Sandrelli on the screen already being a high school student - when I watched “The Conformist” somewhere in 73 - 74. However, the Soviet censorship did everything so that I, seeing Sandrelli on the screen being already, let's say, fully mature, either did not pay attention to her or did not remember. After all, “The Conformist” originally came to the Soviet movie-goers in a completely distorted form: all the scenes justifying the “Children to 16 ...” vulture were cut out. And these were exactly the scenes in which Sandrelli shone!
But! The dance remained! And this dance is remembered the most! And not only me. Already many years later, either in the tram, or in the train, I was an accidental witness of such a scene. One elderly man tried to recall the name of this masterpiece by Bernardo Bertolucci and asked his companion, also at a respectable age, to help him. He told him (even in details) the whole plot of the film, but nothing helped. Finally, he said: “Well, Sandrelli and Sanda were dancing there.” And the answer immediately followed: “You should say it at first. This is “The Conformist"!
But the film in which Stefania Sandrelli literally bumped into my memory for the rest of my life was “We loved each other so much” by Ettore Scola. I watched this movie at the Moscow Film Festival in '75, when I was already a student of University. I have never been a fan of melodramas, but this film has become one of the most beloved ones. And mainly thanks to Sandrelli.
I wanted to see other films with Sandrelli. But the video era has not come yet. And in cinemas there were completely other films. And only in the late 80s, when the time of video salons had come, I’ve got a chance to see Sandrelli on the screen again. But this, as they say, was a completely different story. It was the film “The Key” by Tinto Brass. The film “The Key”, if I may say so, opened one more facet of the unlimited talent of signora Stefania. However, in detail to write about it does not make sense. This is a must see. One thing can be said: Stefania "escapaded" in this film to the heart.
In the 1990s, ideological barriers collapsed in Russia, and another masterpiece by Bernardo Bertolucci, the “Novecento (1900)”, came to the Russian audience, at least 15 years later after its creation. Moreover, this film was shown not in the small stuffy hall of the video salon, but in the main cinema of the city, in a huge hall for several hundred seats. And all the places were occupied!
Well, with the advent of the Internet and DVD, it would be a sin to not take advantage of the opportunities that have appeared. Naturally, I reviewed all the films that I missed as a child: “Divorce Italian Style” (director Pietro Germi), in which 15-year-old Stefania struck down the spot at the Cannes Film Festival and "Seduced and Abandoned" (the director is still the same Pietro Germi), in which Sandrelli managed to play a practically tragic role within an external comedy story and many, many others. Including such as, for example, "Caramelle" and "Attention (The Lie)".
To her 75th Jubilee, Stefania Sandrelli has played in 100 feature films. Of these, 6 films were included in the Golden Thousand. Given this indicator and the dazzling-seductive beauty of Stefanie Sandrelli, she is included in the list of 100 most beautiful and sexy Actresses in world cinema, compiled by FilmGourmand’s.
Stefania Sandrelli's acting work has been awarded 29 film awards, the most prestigious of which are the Venice and San Sebastian International Film Festivals, three David di Donatello Awards for Best Actress, as well as special awards from the Montreal and San Sebastian Film Festivals and the David di Donatello Awards for Outstanding contribution to world cinema.
As usual, in honor of the Jubilee of the great Actress, we offer fans of her work footage from the best films with her participation, included in the Golden Thousand.
