The Leopard [Criterion Collection] [3 Discs]

Director: Luchino Visconti

Overview

In this lush, award-winning Italian costume epic set in mid-19th-century Sicily, an aging prince attempts to adjust to the many political and social changes around him. Prince Don Fabrizo Salina (Burt Lancaster) leads a state that is now being incorporated into Italy. The ruling class is in danger of being eliminated and surpassed by the merchant class. Feeling more than a little insecure about his own social standing, the prince arranges his niece's marriage to a loveless but wealthy landowner in hopes of maintaining his ties to the aristocracy. He also discourages his daughter from marrying the man she loves for social reasons. As the old and new world converges on the Prince, he struggles to maintain the status quo of his long-gone fantasy kingdom.

Product Details

Release Date:	06/08/2004
UPC:	0715515081214
Original Release:	1963
Rating:	NR
Source:	Criterion
Language:	English
Sales rank:	4,653

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Burt Lancaster	Actor
Alain Delon	Actor
Claudia Cardinale	Actor
Rina Morelli	Maria Stella
Paolo Stoppa	Don Calogero
Romolo Valli	Padre
Serge Reggiani	Don Ciccio
Pierro Clementi	Francesco
Marino Mase	Tutor
Mario Girotti	Cayriaghi
Lucilla Morlacchi	Concetta
Ida Galli	Carolina
Ottavia Piccolo	Caterina
Carlo Valenzano	Paolo
Anna-Maria Bottini	Governess Mademoiselle Dombreuil
Terence Hill	Count Cayriaghi
Leslie French	Cavalier Chevally
Olimpia Cavalli	Mariannina
Sandra Chistolini	Youngest Daughter
Brook Fuller	Little Prince
Giuliano Gemma	Garibaldino General
Giovanni Melisendi	Don Onofrio Rotolo
Howard Nelson-Rubien	Don Diego
Lola Braccini	Donna Margherita
Ivo Garrani	Col. Pallavicino
Vittorio Duse	Actor
Alberto Carlo Lolli	Actor
Franco Gula	Actor
Giovanni Materassi	Actor
Carmelo Artale	Actor
Marie Bell	Actor
Amalia Troiani	Actor
Anna Maria Surdo	Actor
Alina Zalewska	Actor
Winni Riva	Actor
Giuseppe Spagnitti	Actor
Rosolino Bua	Actor
Dante Posani	Actor
Stelvio Rosi	Actor
Tina Lattanzi	Actor
Marcella Rovena	Actor
Rina De Liguoro	Actor
Valerio Ruggeri	Actor
Carlo Palmucci	Actor
Nino Rota	Composer

Technical Credits

Suso Cecchi d'Amico

Luchino Visconti

Enrico Medioli

Pasquale Festa Campanile

Massimo Franciosa

Goffredo Lombardo	Producer
Pietro Notarianni	Executive Producer
Suso Cecchi d'Amico	Screenwriter
Luchino Visconti	Screenwriter
Enrico Medioli	Screenwriter
Pasquale Festa Campanile	Screenwriter
Massimo Franciosa	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Il Gattopardo is perhaps much too cinematically opulent to fit comfortably into director Luchino Visconti's body of neo-realist work, but it is likely his most personal film, with a powerful central protagonist (Burt Lancaster) who resembles aspects of Visconti's own life. Visconti was among those wealthy Italians who became attracted to Marxist ideals, but who was not willing to relinquish his own personal wealth or status. There is at least some parallel to the central character in Il Gattopardo, an aristocrat who aware of his own impending obsolescence. The film is meticulously produced, with great attention to period detail. Giuseppe Rotunno's cinematography is a substantial asset, as is Nino Rota's orchestral score and Mario Garbuglia's production design. Several versions of the film exist, most of them considerably shortened from the original theatrically released version.