THE ABC OF CINEMA
Red Desert 12
Italy | 1964 117 minutes
DIRECTED BY
Michelangelo Antonioni
STARRING
Monica Vitti|Richard Harris
Antonioni's first colour film and the last of four he made with Monica Vitti. Released to great acclaim in 1964, it won the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival that year.
The setting is mainly the industrial landscape of Ravenna: lots of smoke, steam, fog and pollution. The chosen colour palette reflects this, as does the sound design. Giuliana (Vitti) is married to a factory manager and is introduced to Corrado (Richard Harris) whose late father had owned the factory. The two share an immediate attraction, finding they are both restless and unsettled. But Giuliana seems to be suffering PTSD, following a car accident, and has difficulty coping with everyday life. She feels Corrado is more understanding of her plight than her husband.
This is no ordinary story of an extra-marital affair, never mind the trailer's suggestion of a 'bodice-ripper'. It is not. More about how people learn to adapt to their situations, like the birds who learn not to fly through the poisonous excretions from the factory.
2 October 2023 MONDAY 19:30
Playhouse Joan Cross Room (JCR) Screen
Tickets £6.00 | Audience limit: 30