Synopsis
Ossessione (1943) is Luchino Visconti's debut feature and you can watch it online on iFILM. Made during World War II, it preceded the official rise of Italian neorealism — and in many ways invented it, shooting on real locations along the Po Valley rather than on studio sets.
A rootless drifter named Gino stops at a roadside inn and immediately locks eyes with Giovanna, the young wife of the older, grating proprietor. She married for security and got a cage. He's allergic to roots and keeps moving — until he doesn't. Their affair turns dark faster than either of them expects, and Visconti films the whole thing in mud, sweat and flat provincial light that makes escape look impossible from the start.
The story draws from James M. Cain's novel The Postman Always Rings Twice — rights uncleared, as it turned out — and Italian authorities pulled the film almost immediately after release. Clara Calamai and Massimo Girotti play the doomed couple with a rawness that still feels modern. Stream Ossessione (1943) online on iFILM.
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