78th Locarno Film Festival: Roberto Rossellini’s “ANNO UNO” (Restored) Review

Roberto Rossellini was a key figure in Italian neorealism, known for films like Rome, Open City (1945), Paisan (1946), and Germany, Year Zero (1948). His use of non-professional actors and real locations transformed postwar cinema.

Later, his collaborations with Ingrid Bergman – Stromboli (1950), Europe ’51 (1952), and Journey to Italy (1954) – showed how his style changed and became more creative. Though less commercially successful then, these works influenced filmmakers like the French New Wave and directors such as Martin Scorsese.

Rossellini’s films combined fiction and reality, exploring history and human experience with fresh cinematic language. His legacy lives on through restorations, archives, and ongoing efforts to preserve his influential body of work. In his penultimate film, ANNO UNO, Rossellini traces an important decade from 1944 to 1954, depicting the turbulent aftermath of Italy’s liberation from fascism. Through the eyes of Christian Democrat leader Alcide De Gasperi, the film charts the monumental challenges of rebuilding a fractured country, balancing fragile political coalitions, and resisting undue influence from the Vatican, all while laying the groundwork for the Italian Republic.

The film’s basis is built on historical rigor. Many of its dialogues come directly from official documents, speeches, and records, lending an immediacy and gravity that few historical dramas achieve. De Gasperi himself emerges as a complex, firm figure; an anti-fascist who endured imprisonment and surveillance, yet rose to serve as Prime Minister through eight successive governments. His nuanced relationship with the Catholic Church, simultaneously close yet cautious, emphasises the complex power dynamics shaping postwar Italy.

ANNO UNO is a biography and a portrait of a nation in transition. It reveals the painstaking negotiations, political compromises, and visionary ideals that build the modern Italian state. Alongside contemporaries like Altiero Spinelli and Konrad Adenauer, De Gasperi stands as a founding father of European unity, a fact highlighted by the film’s historical fidelity and attention to detail.

The 2025 4K restoration by Locarno Heritage breathes new life into Rossellini’s film, showing the director’s precise framing and naturalistic style with stunning detail. The original 35mm negatives have been digitised and colour graded by Cinegrell, while the sound design has been refreshed to preserve the film’s original texture. This restoration not only safeguards a vital piece of Italian cinematic heritage but also reintroduces Rossellini’s vision to contemporary audiences with enhanced vibrancy.

ANNO UNO offers viewers an immersive education in a crucial chapter of Italian history, delivered through Rossellini’s distinctive work. This restored edition is essential for film lovers and history fans, showing Rossellini’s impact and the importance of his work in understanding Italy and postwar Europe.

Written by Maggie Gogler

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