Girl with a Suitcase
An icon of Italian cinema, Claudia Cardinale was not strictly Italian, having grown up in Tunis in a family that spoke French and Sicilian. This composite identity undoubtedly allowed her to navigate effortlessly from one cinematography to another. This program attests to this, bringing together some of her most memorable roles in Italy, forays into popular French cinema, and a memorable appearance in a Herzog film. These examples highlight her radiant screen presence and her wide acting range, from whimsical to serious roles.
Young Lorenzo is having an affair with Aida, a single woman and mother of one who earns her living by dancing, singing, and occasionally prostituting herself.
Valerio Zurlini
Valerio Zurlini was a film director and screenwriter. At the start of his career, he made around fifteen documentary short films. He had his public and critical breakthrough in 1960 with Girl with the Suitcase starring Claudia Cardinale and Jacques Perrin. Perrin joins Marcello Mastroianni in Zurlini's next film, Family Diary, which won the Golden Lion at Venice. In both films, Zurlini depicts the romantic effusion and existential despair of characters who are conscious of their condition. His great strength lies in communicating his protagonists' inner turmoil through landscape and space. Perhaps his most powerful work is The Desert of the Tartars, made in 1976 in the remarkable setting of the citadel of Bam in Iran, with a prestigious international cast (Vittorio Gassman, Philippe Noiret) and music by Ennio Morricone.
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