The Secret of Santa Vittoria (1969)
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67% of critics liked it
(6 reviews) -
89% of users liked it
(430 ratings)
Italo Bombolini (Anthony Quinn) is the mayor of the hillside village of Santa Vittorio. The wine-loving town leader erases a pro-Mussolini slogan when he hears of the fascist being killed and hanged from a meathook. His wife Rosa (Anna Magnani) throws him out of their wine shop when he and his… More Italo Bombolini (Anthony Quinn) is the mayor of the hillside village of Santa Vittorio. The wine-loving town leader erases a pro-Mussolini slogan when he hears of the fascist being killed and hanged from a meathook. His wife Rosa (Anna Magnani) throws him out of their wine shop when he and his friends celebrate and he gives away too much wine. When he hears the retreating Nazi Army will soon be in town, hundreds of villagers turn out to hide the wine in an old Roman cave. The people work day and night, hiding 1 million bottles just before the Nazis enter the town. SS officers threaten death to anyone who withholds the wine. Italo presents a single bottle to the irate general (Hardy Kruger), as the hapless Germans are powerless to force the villagers to produce the coveted bottles. Not even a pistol to the head of their beloved mayor is effective as the town stands by, watching in complete silence. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi
- Directed By
- Stanley Kramer
- Written By
- William Rose, Ben Maddow
- Genres
- Drama, Classics, Comedy
PG,
- In Theaters
- Oct 29, 1969 Wide
- Studio
- United Artists
Critic Reviews
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Variety Staff, Variety
Carrying charm, suspense, romance, the production offers Anthony Quinn at his seasoned best, a plot and unfoldment that holds the spectator.
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, Time Out
Lost without a message to sledgehammer home, Kramer turned to bombastic comedy with this World War II yarn.
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Vincent Canby, New York Times
There's not one affecting, surprising or spontaneous moment in the picture.
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, TV Guide's Movie Guide
An amusing WW II story.
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Steve Crum, Dispatch-Tribune Newspapers
Quinn, as always, is the highlight in this fine Stanley Kramer production.
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Cast
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Anthony Quinn
as Italo Bombolini
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Anna Magnani
as Rosa Bombolini
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Virna Lisi
as Caterina Malatesta
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Hardy Kruger
as Sepp Von Prum
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Sergio Franchi
as Tufa
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Renato Rascel
as Babbaluche
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Giancarlo Giannini
as Fabio
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Patrizia Valturri
as Angela
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Eduardo Ciannelli
as Luigi Lunghetti
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Leopoldo Trieste
as Vittorini
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Gigi Ballista
as Padre Polenta
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Quinto Parmeggiani
as Copa
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Carlo Caprioli
as Giovanni Pietrosanto
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Wolfgang Jansen
as Sgt. Zopf
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Aldo de Carellis
as "Old Vines"
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Marco Tulli
as Mazzola
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Peter Kuiper
as Sgt. Traub
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Dieter Wilken
as Hans
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Karl Otto Alberty
as Otto
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Gigi Bonos
as Benedetti
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Clelia Matania
as Julietta
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Pippo Lauricella
as Pulci
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Carlo Capannelle
as Capoferro
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Renato Chiantoni
as Bracolini
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Pino Ferrara
as Dr. Bara
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Curt Lowens
as Col. Scheer
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Timothy Donnelly
as Pvt. Holtzmann
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Valentina Cortese
as Gabriella
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Francesco Mulé
as Francocci
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Chris Anders
as Corporal Heinsick
