The Sunday Morning Movie Presents: Il Sospetto (1975) Run Time: 1H 46M Plus

Greetings gentle reader and welcome to another installment of the Sunday Morning Movie. Today it’s a grim tale of fidelity in the face of repression, Il Sospeto:

Il sospetto (1975)

and next week’s movie, Hour of the Wolf:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XarTsIOxms&t=2153s

Reviews of Il Sospeto:

Letterboxd says:

This takes patience. The first half is Gian Maria Volonté meeting fellow communists, minutes at a time, to discuss whether to readmit him to the party after some disagreements. He spends time walking the streets with Annie Giradot, who is assigned to assess his worthiness through talk of Trotskyites and other inscrutable party matters, This is all fluid, the characters are always moving, the camera is always moving. It can be a bit dizzying, circular, and claustrophobic.

But then Emilio (Volonté) returns to Turin with an assignment and the film’s focus narrows. The style and technique is much the same, but now with a clear and understandable goal in mind, its effectiveness pays off. The second half is tense, suspenseful and, in the end, unexpected. Volonté is fantastic.

and

Italy’s contribution to the paranoia induced political thrillers in vogue through the 1970s. Instead of taut and exhilarating drama about fighting communist threats during the Cold War period, or about government conspiracy unmasked by plucky journalists, we get a depressing portrait of people trying to fight against a suffocating fascism and becoming victims to their own creeping distrust in the reality they seem to be experiencing.

My take: A tense, relentless film that conveys a sense of dedication and resilience in the face of dire repression. The director focuses the camera almost entirely on Volonté. That focus builds up an intensity that isn’t released until the film’s final scenes. The film is also a glimpse into the operation of a Communist cell. ⭐⭐.

Director: Francesco Maselli

Writers: Francesco Maselli, Franco Solinas

Notable Actors: Gian Maria Volonté

Plot (Spoilers!):

Emilio is a dedicated Italian Communist hiding out in Paris during the Il Duce years. He had had a falling out with the Party leadership. Now things seemed to have been resolved.

He returns to Italy to attempt to flush out a spy amongst the local Communist leaders in Turin. He interviews the three leaders. But the jig is up. Emilio has been under observation by the secret police.

He is arrested and taken in for interrogation. The police chief informs him that he has been used by the Party in Paris to flush out spies. He replies “I know.”

***

Bonuses:

Teddy Brown: The World’s ‘Greatest’ Xylophonist

He was one of Britain’s biggest entertainers. He performed for packed theatres, became known as the World’s “Greatest” Xylophonist, and was one of the highest paid musicians in London.

So why haven’t most people heard of Teddy Brown?

In this mini-documentary, we tell the fascinating story of one of Britain’s most famous variety performers, and explore what happened to the stars of an entertainment world that has almost completely disappeared.

Nabokov on Kafka (1989)

This is a short TV movie based on Nabokov’s lecture at Cornell upon “Metamorphosis,” Kafka’s bizarre story about a man who wakes up one morning to discover he has turned into a giant bug. This was filmed at 1989 by Peter Medak, and Christopher Plummer is portraying Vladimir Nabokov.

Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin | Full Documentary | Director’s Cut | American Masters | PBS

Explore the remarkable life and legacy of late feminist author Ursula K. Le Guin whose groundbreaking work, including “The Left Hand of Darkness,” transformed American literature by bringing science fiction into the literary mainstream. For the first time, you can now watch the director’s cut of this documentary.

This documentary originally aired on August 2, 2019.

Bach – The Keyboard Concertos / Presentation + New Mastering (Century’s recording : Glenn Gould)

Keyboard Concerto No.2 in E MAjor, BWV 1053
I.Allegro (00:00) II.Siciliano (08:04) III.Allegro (12:41)

Keyboard Concerto No.3 in D Major, BWV 1054
I.Allegro (19:01) II.Adagio e piano sempre (26:51)
III.Allegro (32:43)

Keyboard Concerto No.4 in A Major, BWV 1055
I.Allegro (35:33) II.Larghetto (39:41)
III.Allegro ma non tanto (45:23)

Keyboard Concerto No.5 in F minor, BWV 1056
I.Allegro (49:33) II.Largo (53:10) III.Presto (56:07

Keyboard Concerto No.7 in G minor, BWV 1058
I.Allegro (59:57) II.Andante (1:03:47)
III.Allegro assai (1:09:46)
Columbia Symphony Orchestra
Direction : Vladimir Golschmann
Recorded in 1958,67,69, at NewYork

J. S. Bach – Sonatas & Partitas For Lute

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
Sonatas & Partitas For Lute.

Sonata I BWV 1001
1. Adagio
2. Fuga
3. Siciliana
4. Presto

Partita I BWV 1002
5. Allemanda
6. Double
7. Corrente
8. Double
9. Sarabanda
10. Double
11. Tempo di Borea
12. Double

Sonata II BWV 1003
13. Grave
14. Fuga
15. Andante
16. Allegro

Partita II BWV 1004

17. Allemanda
18. Corrente
19. Sarabanda
20. Giga
21. Ciaccona

Sonata III BWV 1005
22. Adagio
23. Fuga
24. Largo
25. Allegro Assai

Partita III BWV 1004

26. Preludio
27. Loure
28. Gavotte en Rondeau
29. Menuets I & II
30. Bourrée
31.Gigue
32. Menuet II

Hopkinson Smith, baroque lute