Muerte en Roma

An Italian war drama; A story depicting the background and events leading up to one of the most devastating wartime atrocities in modern history, the Adreatine Massacre in Rome in 1944. Thirty-three members of the German 11th Company, 3rd Battalion, SS Police Regiment 'Bozen', were attacked and gunned down by the Roman underground. Hitler's reprisal was to order the deaths of ten Roman civilians for each of the thirty-three SS soldiers killed. The Pope ordered that one Roman priest collaborate with the SS to carry it out. George P. Cosmatos directs the drama with a palpable emphasis on plot. Darkly lit to create a looming atmosphere and uncompromising scenes works well. The dialogue moralises about non-involvement, which becomes heavy at times, and there are also many inaccuracies. The character of the Head of the Security Police, Herbert Kappler, was a ruthless war criminal and not war-weary and troubled, as portrayed here by Richard Burton. The German victims in the story were regular Austrian soldiers. Of lesser importance, though, is Father Pietro Antonelli being a composite character. It's a bit cumbersome as it progresses, but as a story, it is interesting for the dilemma of reprisal and absorbing for the conflicting views of morality. Good drama arises from face-to-face confrontations.