LE AMICHE
(1955, d. Michelangelo Antonioni)
Starring Eleonora Rossi Drago, Gabriele Ferzetti, Valentina Cortese, Yvonne Furneaux, Franco Fabrizi, Madeleine Fischer, Anna Maria Pancani, Ettore Manni
NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION:
The film opens with designer Clelia
(Eleanora Rossi Drago), returning to her native Turin to launch a new
fashion salon. At her hotel, she discovers the unconscious body of a
woman, Rosetta (Madeleine Fischer). In the aftermath of what we learn
was Rosetta’s attempted suicide, Clelia meets Rosetta’s friend Momina
(Yvonne Furneaux), who introduces Clelia to a group of socialite women.
While trying to manage the construction of her new salon, she is
distracted by the new relationship with Carlo (Ettore Manni). As work of
her new salon comes to a finish, so do the friendships in her new
social circle.
Le Amiche
Photo courtesy: Titanus, Rai Cinema, and Cineteca di Bologna
The real achievement of Le Amiche might be the deftness with which Antonioni handles the stories of eight different characters. He allows the plot to unfold, instead of artificially trying to introduce all the characters; we follow one character until he or she meets another who is involved in the story. Once all of the characters are introduced, Antonioni cuts back and forth between different storylines so gracefully that it never seems as though any one character is neglected.
Photo courtesy: Titanus, Rai Cinema, and Cineteca di Bologna
RESTORATION NOTES:
Cineteca di Bologna (Bologna Film Archive) digitally restored Michelangelo Antonioni's 1955 film, Le Amiche, from the original black & white 35mm camera negatives. The original camera negatives were first scanned at 2K resolution and then, using the resulting scan, cleaned to remove any dirt, scratches and de-graining to stabilize the picture.
Additionally, the audio was digitally restored using the original sound negative. A digital internegative was created from the newly restored film and audio elements. From this digital internegative, a black & white interpositive fine grain master was produced, which generated an answer print. After the print was checked, 35mm black & white release prints were struck.
Cineteca di Bologna (Bologna Film Archive) digitally restored Michelangelo Antonioni's 1955 film, Le Amiche, from the original black & white 35mm camera negatives. The original camera negatives were first scanned at 2K resolution and then, using the resulting scan, cleaned to remove any dirt, scratches and de-graining to stabilize the picture.
Additionally, the audio was digitally restored using the original sound negative. A digital internegative was created from the newly restored film and audio elements. From this digital internegative, a black & white interpositive fine grain master was produced, which generated an answer print. After the print was checked, 35mm black & white release prints were struck.
Photo courtesy: Titanus, Rai Cinema, and Cineteca di Bologna
