Cuatro días de rebelión

This film was brought to my attention by a friend who suggested that, since I enjoyed Roberto Rosselini's Open City, I would enjoy this film, which he considered to be even better than Rosselini's. I was impressed, to say the least, and inclined to agree. The story seemed infinitely more real and affecting.

Small stories of individual lives and relationships splintered apart by the actions of Germany in Naples after the Allies have declared victory in Europe in WWII isn't a subject many people will jump at the chance to see, but they should think again. We may never have the experience of being under occupation here in America, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate and feel the bravery of a city that fights back against the tyranny of the weary German army. And if you have an aversion to war films, subtitled ones in particular, don't worry; the performances from the actors involved are strong enough to feed the emotions onto the screen without need of a translator.

This is a gem not many people know about. It's a shame. This is a film that needs a revolution in the minds of cineastes everywhere.

Every time I watch this movie I'm deeply moved by the many true to life characters you see depicted on the backdrop scenario of the struggle Napoli's citizens suffered to get rid of the Nazis' invasion and occupation.

Many of the characters are not fictitious: the child Gennaro Capuozzo was awarded the Gold Medal for Military Valor.

The cast is exceptional with many great actors and the minor ones act in a perfect way too. Even with the technical limitations of this movie, I find it engrossing and very close to the world famous Italian neorealism masterpieces such as Paisà and Roma Città Aperta.

I highly recommend it.

Can you find the main character? I can't.

Like many of you, I love movies. In every film that I've seen; sound and silent, short and feature length, narrative and documentary, a main character emerges. Sometimes, like in Fail-Safe and Dr. Strangelove, more than one emerges as part of a shifting focus, usually against the backdrop of a grand narrative. I've never seen a film, with the possible exception of very early cinema and raw news footage, where there is not even a pretense at a central character.

Instead, the city of Naples itself is the main character. With no disrespect meant to the men and women of Naples who faced the German Army, it's as though the city itself becomes a dog shaking off its deadly fleas.

Mall Megaplexes are jammed with the same few films, with different casts and titles perhaps, but stories told with a very limited scope. I encourage you to sample what great cinema looks like when told from a completely unique viewpoint.

A cast of virtual then-unknowns re-enacts the German takeover of Naples following the Italian Army's surrender to the Allies, and the peasant uprising which ensued. "The Four Days of Naples" was released in 1962 and is shown occasionally on Turner Classic Movies, in Italian with English subtitles.

What's most interesting about this film is that director Loy follows many characters and subplots, and often fails to resolve them because they become lost in the chaos of the house-to-house battle within the city. Frank Wolff ("Desert Assault") is Salvatore, who loves Maria (Lea Massari) even though she has married a rich man. The two wind up fighting along side one another; Gian Maria Volonte is the Captain who helps organize a partisan resistance; Aldo Giuffre (The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) is one member of an Italian artillery unit which becomes embroiled in the siege; and Enzo Turco ("Anzio") is a Black-shirt who is taken prisoner despite his Fascist convictions. Every member of the ensemble cast is passionate and utterly convincing. Many were virtually unknown at the time of production, and became big stars in Italy within the next few years.

Director Loy shoots his film with a documentary style. Some shots are well-crafted, though, and give the audience a new perspective on the action. One long pan from a rooftop from which partisans are firing on the Germans shows how the men move from street to street without any cutting at all. The black-and-white cinematography is utterly fantastic. Close-ups of faces deliver all of the drama that dialog simply cannot convey.

The film brings the viewer inside what occupation and resistance do the civilian population of a city. At one point, the Germans drive the citizens out of one quarter so that they can occupy it, forcing people to move in with strangers on the other side of the city. Later, they attempt to conscript Italian men into their labor force, which is what sparks the uprising. The camera follows us into individual homes and family situations, which are ripped apart by the affects of war. He then takes us to massive crowds as they riot in the streets. The scope of battle is excellently captured, as are the cramped alleys and rooms from which the citizens must fight.

There a number of standout vignettes: the Neapolitans throwing furniture from their windows atop the heads of Nazi soldiers in a narrow alleyway; one sequence in which a number of teens escape a reform school to join the fight; a prisoner-negotiation scene in which things go unexpectedly and several Italian civilians are caught in a crossfire; the scene in which the Italian men are taken in trucks to be conscripted, only to have their wives overwhelm the German guards. All of these scenes convey a spirit of freedom, aided by Carlo Rustichelli's rousing score.

"The Four Days of Naples" is a well-crafted drama, intended to be taken seriously, unlike many Italian war films which would follow a few years later. This is an inspiring drama of courage and determination, definitely a must-see for any fan of war films or the Italian cinema.

This documentary-style drama shows us the determination of a civilian population to end wartime conscription by a former ally. The Nazi army tries by terror to force the Italian people to join them as they struggle on against the advance of the Allied forces in WWII Italy. Citizens decide against fighting the war any longer, and rally themselves to drive out the German soldiers from their city and their lives in only four days.

I watched this film in basic training camp in 1963. I did not know at the time if I was being ordered to Southeast Asia to participate in the war there or not. I had had a vision on the firing range that an active combat role in Viet Nam would be more terrible than I could ultimately live with in later years. Fortunately, I was sent to the staging area on Okinawa, and not to Viet Nam. I saw the film again when I reached Okinawa, and became aware of the war a thousand miles away.

The film crystalized for me that mankind could choose not to fight wars to settle disputes between countries, and that passionate citizens could resist the most disciplined of armies. The Neopolitan people's example to me from twenty years before, as I stood at the brink of the Southeast Asian war, spoke deeply to me of what humanity must strive to achieve through the advancement of its behavior and character.

I long to see the film again, or to read the source book, as world events swirl around us, echoing themes in the Four Days of Naples.