The Leopard (1963). Photofest.
For this screening, patrons must show proof of vaccination and wear masks. For more information, please see our Health & Safety page.
(Il Gattopardo, Luchino Visconti, Italy 1963, 186 min., 35mm, Italian w/subtitles)
A grand-scale epic, set in 1860s Sicily during the Risorgimento—the period that marked the end of Sicily’s existence as an independent monarchy and the emergence of an Italian state—The Leopard is a lavish, elegiac chronicle of the decline of an aristocratic family under the crushing weight of political change. Burt Lancaster is brilliant as the aging patriarch who can only stand aside and quietly observe his old ways being trampled by a new generation, represented here by the coupling of European superstars Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale. Based on the eponymous classic by the Italian novelist Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, elegantly directed by Luchino Visconti, and garnished with Giuseppe Rotunno’s limpid Technicolor cinematography, The Leopard has been described by Martin Scorsese as “one of the greatest visual experiences in cinema.”