FA7509 |
Per le antiche scale |
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" Per le antiche scale " composed by Ennio Morricone (00:06:33) |
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01-Film Overview |
01-1 Summary |
Director£º Mauro Bolognini
Scriptwriter: Raffaele Andreassi / Mario Arosio
Music : Ennio Morricone
Countries: Italy | France |
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Alias
Brazil O Segredo das Velhas Escadas
France En descendant les marches d'antan(Festival Title)
France Vertiges
Greece Katrakylontas sta palia skalopatia(transliterated title)
Italy Per le antiche scale
Netherlands In de klauwen van de waanzin
Poland Po antycznych schodach
Portugal Vertigens
Spain Por las antiguas escaleras
Turkey Eski merdivenler(Turkish)
United Kingdom Down the Ancient Stairs
United States Down the Ancient Stairs
Uruguay Locura erótica(original subtitled version)
World-wide Down the Ancient Stairs (English)l |
Main Actors
Marcello Mastroianni, Françoise Fabian, Marthe Kelle
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01-2 About the original Work |
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1 Original£¨IT£© Il libro è ambientato in un manicomio e il narratore (e protagonista) è un medico psichiatra.
Nella prima parte del libro viene descritto il carattere di un precedente medico dell’ospedale, grande personalità e uomo di scienza.
L’approfondimento della sua figura permette di cogliere tutta una serie di singolarità (non esce mai dal manicomio, ha paura dei temporali, non tocca mai le porte che conducono ai diversi reparti e così via) che fanno emergere una mente piena di paure e comunque animata da un delirio di onnipotenza.
Nella seconda parte il romanzo è costituito da una serie di ritratti di malati di mente, dai quali emergono l’ineluttabilità della malattia e nel contempo la profonda umanità dei protagonisti, che sono anch’essi in grado di dare e ricevere amore e con i quali è possibile instaurare un dialogo se si riesce a comprendere il linguaggio.
Il vero protagonista è comunque costituito dal manicomio, che sembra dominare sia i sani che i malati.
La struttura chiusa determina dei confini invalicabili, che sono innanzitutto psicologici (prima che fisici) tant’è vero che gli stessi medici spesso sono portati a vivere all’interno.
Il manicomio non è il paradigma della vita moderna, che, pur apparentemente così libera e aperta, è in realtà chiusa in schemi precostituiti e in una serie di vincoli? E il malato di mente, nei suoi deliri e nel suo peregrinare con la mente, non rappresenta di fatto la vera, e unica, libertà?Lo stile è asciutto, privo di qualsiasi retorica e si sviluppa in modo piano e sereno, contrassegnato da una lieve ironia e da accenti di tenerezza.£¨ here) |
Translation online (EN)£ºThe book is set in a mental hospital and the narrator (and protagonist) is a psychiatrist.
The first part of the book describes the character of a previous hospital doctor, a great personality and man of science.
The in-depth study of his figure allows us to grasp a whole series of singularities (he never leaves the mental hospital, he is afraid of storms, he never touches the doors that lead to the different departments and so on) which bring out a mind full of fears and in any case animated by a delirium of omnipotence.
In the second part the novel is made up of a series of portraits of mentally ill people, from which emerge the inevitability of the disease and at the same time the profound humanity of the protagonists, who are also capable of giving and receiving love and with whom it is possible to establish a dialogue if you can understand the language.
The real protagonist, however, is the mental hospital, which seems to dominate both the healthy and the sick.
The closed structure determines insurmountable boundaries, which are first and foremost psychological (before physical), so much so that doctors themselves are often forced to live inside.
Isn't the mental hospital the paradigm of modern life, which, although apparently so free and open, is in reality closed in pre-established patterns and a series of constraints? And doesn't the mentally ill person, in his delusions and his wanderings with his mind, actually represent the true and only freedom? The style is dry, devoid of any rhetoric and develops in a calm and serene way, marked by a slight irony and accents of tenderness |
2 Vincitore del Premio Campiello nel 1972 (IT)
Il 30 maggio 1978 viene approvata al Parlamento la legge 180, la cosiddetta Legge Basaglia. Grazie all’intelligenza sensibile di questo medico di Venezia, cambia il volto del manicomio italiano. Viene cancellato l’elemento bolgesco e crudele dell’internamento coatto, quello tipico della procedura disciplinare. Il pazzo, l’anormale, non è più un mostro da emarginare, ma un paziente da accudire e accompagnare nel difficile percorso del reintegramento sociale. Solidarietà e assistenza sanitaria garantiscono la corretta interpretazione della cura psichiatrica. Scompaiono inferriate e lucchetti, compare la sincerità terapeutica del rapporto umano.
Mario Tobino, in quanto psichiatra e scrittore, esterna sulla questione un punto di vista privilegiato. Si trasforma in cronista artistico della malattia mentale. Investiga, per il lettore, il collasso della ragione, e offre le sue conoscenze per diminuire distanze e paure. Diventa insomma, alfiere di quella parte dell’umanità indifesa, che vive forzatamente secondo le regole della comunità da cui è esclusa.
“Per le antiche scale” vince, nel 1972, il premio Campiello. Protagonisti dell’opera sono i venti racconti-descrizione, dove Tobino specchia in parole, gli animi e le sofferenze di pazienti e curanti di un manicomio. Venti storie tenute insieme dalla memoria del giovane medico Anselmo – alter ego scoperto dello scrittore – che ricostruisce le vite rinchiuse dell’istituto psichiatrico di Maggiano, dalla figura del vecchio primario Bonaccorsi ai profili degli internati. Il prodotto è - per paradosso - un album equilibrato di figurine sane e malate, distribuite nei ranghi ordinati della gerarchia manicomiale. L’effetto: un’inaspettata sensazione di innocenza e purezza che avvolge i cuori.
Il merito è quello di saper spiegare, mediante mimesi poetica, il mutamento occidentale dell’approccio alla follia. L’autore riversa nel libro materiali e sentimenti vissuti in prima persona, senza il rischio della retorica e del melodramma patetico. Disegna quadri a colori di personaggi fortemente personalizzati, tratteggia romanticamente le linee dell’alterazione. (Here)
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Translation online£ºWinner of the Campiello Prize in 1972 (EN)
On 30 May 1978, law 180, the so-called Basaglia Law, was approved in Parliament. Thanks to the sensitive intelligence of this doctor from Venice, the face of the Italian mental hospital changes. The brutal and cruel element of forced internment, typical of the disciplinary procedure, is cancelled. The madman, the abnormal, is no longer a monster to be marginalized, but a patient to be cared for and accompanied on the difficult path of social reintegration. Solidarity and healthcare guarantee the correct interpretation of psychiatric treatment. Railings and padlocks disappear, the therapeutic sincerity of the human relationship appears.
Mario Tobino, as a psychiatrist and writer, expresses a privileged point of view on the issue. He transforms himself into an artistic chronicler of mental illness. He investigates, for the reader, the collapse of reason, and offers his knowledge to reduce distances and fears. In short, he becomes the standard bearer of that defenseless part of humanity, which lives forcibly according to the rules of the community from which it is excluded.
“For the ancient stairs” won the Campiello prize in 1972. The protagonists of the work are the twenty description-stories, where Tobino reflects in words the souls and sufferings of patients and carers in a mental hospital. Twenty stories held together by the memory of the young doctor Anselmo - the writer's discovered alter ego - who reconstructs the lives locked up in the Maggiano psychiatric institute, from the figure of the old head doctor Bonaccorsi to the profiles of the inmates. The product is - paradoxically - a balanced album of healthy and sick stickers, distributed in the orderly ranks of the mental hospital hierarchy. The effect: an unexpected sensation of innocence and purity that envelops the hearts.
The merit is that of being able to explain, through poetic mimesis, the Western change in the approach to madness. The author pours into the book materials and feelings experienced firsthand, without the risk of rhetoric and pathetic melodrama. He draws color paintings of highly personalized characters, romantically outlining the lines of alteration.
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3 About " Per le antiche scale "—— Mario Tobino |
03-£¨IT) Romanzo composto da venti racconti tutti raccontati dalla voce di Anselmo, dottore in psichiatria nel manicomio di Lucca, pubblicato nel 1972, vincitore del Premio Campiello.
Il periodo di riferimento delle vicende va dagli anni dell’anteguerra fascista agli albori della riforma Basaglia, l’età moderna, e gli accadimenti riportano i cambiamenti in ambito psichiatrico avvenuti in quegli anni. Anni in cui si scoprirono gli psicofarmaci, e in cui si sviluppò una corrente di pensiero che negava la malattia mentale e ne attribuiva le cause alla società sempre più consumistica e capitalista.
E, ironizza Tombino, lui che ha cercato di capire la causa della follia, illudendosi a volte di esserci riuscito, lui che aveva supposto che la malattia mentale non avesse nulla a che fare con il mondo affettivo che rimaneva intatto, ma era legato solo a quello della intelligenza razionale: “Oggi è di moda, un andazzo, specie presso i medici giovani, psichiatri innovatori, di sdrammatizzare la pazzia, dichiararla non pericolosa, affermare che non esiste: e non la vogliono riconoscere neppure quando tragicamente si presenta. E se delle volte la pazzia li colpisce proprio sul muso, che è impossibile dire di no, allora ripiegano sulla società, incolpano questa, che è malformata, la società la profonda causa delle malattie mentali.”
L’avvento degli psicofarmaci permise la nascita di una nuova logica, di una nuova filosofia nei confronti della malattia mentale e nella prassi di assistenza dei malati che, per la prima volta non erano solo accuditi e custoditi, ma anche curati e a volte anche guariti.
Definirei questo libro delicato. Delicato come solo la poesia sa essere.
Delicato nel cogliere quella diversa normalità che comunica in altro modo, il bisogno di amore di queste persone e la necessità di trovare un via per riconoscere a loro stessi un posto e un ruolo (ove era possibile) all’interno di quel microcosmo.
Il suo linguaggio è pietoso e al contempo spietato nel ricondurre alla pragmatica necessaria per custodire i malati.
Il suo linguaggio è musica, come quella che usano alcuni malati per comunicare.
Il suo linguaggio è purezza, come quella che cercano alcuni malati bruciandosi le mani.
Il suo linguaggio è immortale, come pensa di esserlo il “federale” che con un delirio di negazione dice che il mondo non esiste ed è vuoto, e quindi lui è eterno.
Ed è immortale perché parla con il linguaggio del cuore. |
Translation online (EN)£ºNovel composed of twenty stories all told by the voice of Anselmo, doctor of psychiatry in the mental hospital of Lucca, published in 1972, winner of the Campiello Prize.
The reference period of the events goes from the pre-war fascist years to the dawn of the Basaglia reform, the modern age, and the events report the changes in the psychiatric field that occurred in those years. Years in which psychotropic drugs were discovered, and in which a current of thought developed that denied mental illness and attributed its causes to an increasingly consumerist and capitalist society.
And, ironically Tombino, he who tried to understand the cause of madness, at times deluding himself that he had succeeded, he who had assumed that mental illness had nothing to do with the emotional world which remained intact, but was linked only to that of rational intelligence: “Today it is fashionable, a trend, especially among young doctors, innovative psychiatrists, to play down madness, declare it not dangerous, affirm that it does not exist: and they do not want to recognize it even when it tragically presents itself. And if sometimes madness hits them right in the face, that it is impossible to say no, then they fall back on society, they blame this, which is malformed, society as the profound cause of mental illnesses.”
The advent of psychotropic drugs allowed the birth of a new logic, of a new philosophy towards mental illness and in the practice of caring for the sick who, for the first time, were not only cared for and cared for, but also cared for and sometimes even healed.
I would call this book delicate. Delicate as only poetry can be.
Delicate in grasping that different normality that communicates in another way, the need for love of these people and the need to find a way to recognize for themselves a place and a role (where possible) within that microcosm.
His language is merciful and at the same time ruthless in bringing back the pragmatics necessary to look after the sick.
His language is music, like the one some sick people use to communicate.
His language is purity, like that which some sick people seek by burning their hands.
His language is immortal, as the "federal" thinks it is, who with a delirium of denial says that the world does not exist and is empty, and therefore he is eternal.
And he is immortal because he speaks with the language of the heart. |
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01-3-synopsis |
3-1 A mental hospital somewhere in Tuscany during the thirties. Far away from fascism, this closed world is rules over by Dr. Bonaccorsi, a passionate benevolent psychiatrist whose dream is to isolate the germ of madness. He is also a very active ladies'man and makes three women benefit from his sexual itch: Francesca the hospital manager's wife, Bianca, his devoted nurse and Carla, a nymphomaniac doctor's wife. His well-ordered universe starts being challenged with the coming of Anna, a trainee psychiatrist, who disapproves of his theory on the origin of madness. Worse, she resists his advances. As Bonaccorsi is more insecure than he looks, what will become of him? (IMDB£©
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3-2 In this drama, set during the 1930s, the head shrink at an Italian insane asylum believes that insanity is caused by a virus. His intensive research has caused him to spend all his time at the hospital. He hasn't left it for eight years. A young female doctor comes and gets close to the chief doctor. She learns that he is afraid he has become infected. The only bright spots in his life are the affairs he has with the superintendent's wife, his assistant, and the wife of a peer. ( ŦԼʱ±¨£© |
3-3 Uno psichiatra, negli anni Trenta, ha l'ossessione di isolare il bacillo della pazzia e odia Freud perché ha paura di essere pazzo: suo padre infatti si è suicidato e sua sorella è internata nel manicomio di cui è direttore. Deluso professionalmente e sentimentalmente il medico sente in uno scompartimento ferroviario un fanatico del regime fascista esaltare idee razziste e si rende conto che la follia sta diventando collettiva. £¨ My movies) |
Translation online (EN): A psychiatrist, in the 1930s, is obsessed with isolating the bacillus of madness and hates Freud because he is afraid of being crazy: his father in fact committed suicide and his sister is interned in the mental hospital of which he is director. Disappointed professionally and sentimentally, the doctor hears a fanatic of the fascist regime extolling racist ideas in a train compartment and realizes that the madness is becoming collective |
3-4 Su una collina, in un castello trasformato in un istituto psichiatrico, i malati sono curati dal dottor Anselmo come persone che hanno smarrito, spesso solo temporaneamente, la luce dell’intelligenza, ma non quella dei sentimenti, che rimangono intatti e riaffiorano non appena il delirio cessa di suscitare le proprie immagini irreali, potenti e devastatrici. In questo libro Mario Tobino ha saputo trasfigurare la propria esperienza di psichiatra in un intenso discorso umano e artistico sorretto da una vibrazione lirica che dona lievità e mobilità inconfondibili al suo stile. Attraverso un’adesione partecipe e disarmata alla realtà, un arrendersi alle cose superando qualsiasi diaframma tra medico e paziente, Tobino annulla la distanza tra lo scrittore e la sua materia, nella ricerca e nella conquista di un’umanità assolutamente vera e autentica. |
Translation online (EN): On a hill, in a castle transformed into a psychiatric institute, the sick are treated by Doctor Anselmo as people who have lost, often only temporarily, the light of intelligence, but not that of feelings, which remain intact and resurface as soon as the delirium ceases to arouse its unreal, powerful and devastating images. In this book Mario Tobino was able to transfigure his experience as a psychiatrist into an intense human and artistic discourse supported by a lyrical vibration that gives unmistakable lightness and mobility to his style. Through a participatory and disarmed adhesion to reality, a surrender to things overcoming any diaphragm between doctor and patient, Tobino cancels the distance between the writer and his subject, in the search and conquest of an absolutely true and authentic humanity. |
3-5 |
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For the Ancient Stairs, based on a story by Mario Tobino, is one of the most aesthetically refined and murky films by Mauro Bolognini at the same time. A story of mental illness expressed between authorship and gender eroticism |
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3-5 (IT£©L’origine della follia
Nell’Italia fascista del 1930, il professor Bonaccorsi, rinomato psichiatra, svolge attività di ricerca sulla follia nel manicomio dove lavora. In realtà, il dottore è ossessionato dall’idea di essere pazzo, sia per il molto tempo passato a contatto con i malati, sia per una “predisposizione” di famiglia: suo padre è morto suicida e la sorella è ricoverata nello stesso manicomio. Quando crede di aver dimostrato l’esistenza del gene della pazzia, la prova contraria gli viene sbattuta in faccia da Anna, una giovane dottoressa.
I film di ambientazione manicomiale, all’interno del cinema italiano, hanno tracciato un solco abbastanza forte, specialmente verso la metà degli anni Settanta. Dopo l’apripista La casa delle mele mature (1971) di Pino Tosini, si è proseguito sia sul fronte dell’autorialità tout court con opere come Matti da slegare (1975) di Marco Bellocchio e Silvano Agosti, che sul versante più popolare anche se con il tocco di maestri come Alberto Lattuada (Oh, Serafina!).
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Mauro Bolognini contribuisce al filone in maniera del tutto personale e nel 1975 esce Per le antiche scale, un dramma psicologico ambientato all’interno di una casa manicomiale, liberamente ispirato al racconto Dentro la cerchia delle mura di Mario Tobino e appartenente alla raccolta che dà il titolo al film. Bolognini è già entrato nella sua fase più dichiaratamente erotica ed esteticamente raffinata, che ha fatto alzare il sopracciglio a gran parte della critica, accusandolo spesso di calligrafismo. L’eleganza formale che il cineasta raggiunge in questo film (grazie alla fotografia giallognola di Ennio Guarnieri e alle scenografie e i costumi di Piero Tosi), non appare inamidata e frigidamente scultorea (come avverrà nel successivo e mediocre La venexiana), ma trattiene quel senso di profonda ambiguità ontologica che esprimono i personaggi messi in scena. L’autore evita di utilizzare i nudi e l’eros femminile per titillare i bassi istinti dello spettatore medio – pur disponendo di un cast femminile che va da Barbara Bouchet ad Adriana Asti – così la moda del voyeurismo gratuito viene evitata in favore di una dimensione morbosa che sfocia nella pura tragedia umana. Bolognini intesse un intrigante discorso sulle origini della pazzia, attraverso le maniacali ricerche del professor Bonaccorsi (Marcello Mastroianni), ossessionato dalla paura di essere contaminato da un ipotetico gene della malattia mentale. Il personaggio di Mastroianni si intrattiene sessualmente con diverse pazienti per studiarne a fondo i raptus erotici, senza ammettere a sé stesso che in realtà sta fuggendo da una propria dimensione psicotica.
Il film si apre con una festa di carnevale organizzata all’interno del manicomio e il professor Bonaccorsi funge da capocomico della serata in maschera. Tale sequenza anticipa i disturbi psichici che corrodono il personaggio di Mastroianni, il quale dietro l’apparenza formale e severa nasconde una natura satiresca, un po’ come il Gassman schizofrenico di Anima persa. Quella del professore è una tara ereditaria che non ha risparmiato nemmeno la sorella, che egli tiene segregata per nascondere il proprio lato oscuro, un po’ come Dorian Gray appariva sempre giovane mentre la propria immagine si corrompeva sul dipinto occultato da un telo.
Bolognini inserisce questo tragico racconto psicologico all’interno di una dimensione onirica che sfiora il coté gotico, dilatando così a dismisura le ossessioni e le paure del protagonista (la cella segreta con la sorella pazza, non può non ricordare la stanza in cui giace la folle moglie di Rochester in Jane Eyre), il quale dovrà fuggire dalla clinica vinto dai propri fantasmi e rassegnarsi che fuori dalle mura manicomiali lo aspetta un nuovo incubo in ascesa: quello del fascismo. £¨mediacritica£©
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(3-5 EN) Translation online£º origin of madness
In fascist Italy in 1930, Professor Bonaccorsi, a renowned psychiatrist, carries out research on madness in the mental hospital where he works. In reality, the doctor is obsessed with the idea of being crazy, both due to the long time spent in contact with the sick, and due to a family "predisposition": his father committed suicide and his sister is hospitalized in the same mental hospital. When he believes he has demonstrated the existence of the madness gene, the contrary evidence is thrown in his face by Anna, a young doctor.
Films with a mental hospital setting have made quite a strong impact on Italian cinema, especially towards the mid-1970s. After the trailblazer The House of Mature Apples (1971) by Pino Tosini, we continued both on the front of authorship tout court with works such as Matti da slegare (1975) by Marco Bellocchio and Silvano Agosti, and on the more popular side even though with the touch of masters like Alberto Lattuada (Oh, Serafina!).
Mauro Bolognini contributes to the genre in a completely personal way and in 1975 he released Per le antica scales, a psychological drama set inside a mental hospital, freely inspired by the story Dentro la Cerchia delle Mura by Mario Tobino and belonging to the collection that gives the title of the film. Bolognini has already entered his most openly erotic and aesthetically refined phase, which has raised the eyebrows of many critics, often accusing him of calligraphy. The formal elegance that the filmmaker achieves in this film (thanks to the yellowish photography by Ennio Guarnieri and the sets and costumes by Piero Tosi), does not appear starched and frigidly sculptural (as will happen in the subsequent and mediocre La venexiana), but retains that sense of profound ontological ambiguity that the characters on stage express. The author avoids using nudes and female eros to titillate the base instincts of the average spectator - despite having a female cast ranging from Barbara Bouchet to Adriana Asti - thus the trend of gratuitous voyeurism is avoided in favor of a morbid that leads to pure human tragedy. Bolognini weaves an intriguing discourse on the origins of madness, through the maniacal research of Professor Bonaccorsi (Marcello Mastroianni), obsessed by the fear of being contaminated by a hypothetical mental illness gene. Mastroianni's character entertains himself sexually with several patients to study their erotic fits in depth, without admitting to himself that he is actually fleeing from his own psychotic dimension.¡£
The film opens with a carnival party organized inside the mental hospital and Professor Bonaccorsi acts as the comedian of the masquerade evening. This sequence anticipates the psychic disorders that corrode Mastroianni's character, who behind the formal and severe appearance hides a satirical nature, a bit like the schizophrenic Gassman in Anima persa. The professor's is a hereditary flaw that has not spared even his sister, whom he keeps segregated to hide his dark side, a bit like Dorian Gray always appeared young while his image was corrupted on the painting hidden by a cloth.
Bolognini inserts this tragic psychological tale within a dreamlike dimension that touches on the Gothic side, thus expanding the protagonist's obsessions and fears disproportionately (the secret cell with the crazy sister cannot help but recall the room in which the madwoman lies Rochester's wife in Jane Eyre), who will have to escape from the clinic won by his own ghosts and resign himself to the fact that a new rising nightmare awaits him outside the walls of the asylum: that of fascism.
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3-6 Il dott. Bonaccorsi, primario di un ospedale neuropsichiatrico, ricerca da anni il virus della follia convinto com'è che la demenza sia una malattia che, una volta scovato nel sangue il "puntino nero" che le dà origine, è possibile combattere e vincere. In realtà, il dottore è ossessionato dall'idea d'essere pazzo sia per il molto tempo passato a contatto con i malati, sia per eventuali "tare" di famiglia: suo padre è morto suicida e la sorella è ricoverata nello stesso manicomio. Quando crede di avere dimostrata la propria tesi, l'affermazione e prova contraria gli viene sbattuta in faccia da Anna, una giovane dottoressa giunta da poco come a "praticante". I rapporti con le varie Gianna, Carla, Bianca e Francesca (moglie del direttore) non gli impediscono di tentare la conquista anche di Anna. Le crisi del Bonaccorsi aumentano dopo il tentato suicidio di Gianna e quello riuscito di Francesca. Allontanatosi dall'ospedale, il medico scopre che la società degli anni 30 è globalmente pazza della pazzia fascista. £¨ Here) |
3-6 (EN): The Dr. Bonaccorsi, head of a neuropsychiatric hospital, has been researching the virus of madness for years, convinced that dementia is a disease that, once the "black dot" that gives rise to it is found in the blood, it is possible to fight and overcome. In reality, the doctor is obsessed with the idea of being crazy both due to the long time spent in contact with the sick and due to possible family "flaws": his father committed suicide and his sister is hospitalized in the same mental hospital. When he believes he has proven his thesis, the statement and contrary evidence is thrown in his face by Anna, a young doctor who has recently become a "practitioner". The relationships with the various Gianna, Carla, Bianca and Francesca (the director's wife) do not prevent him from attempting to conquer Anna too. Bonaccorsi's crises increase after Gianna's attempted suicide and Francesca's successful one. Having left the hospital, the doctor discovers that the society of the 1930s is globally crazy with fascist madness |
3-6 Comparison between Tobino's Original Works and Bolognini's Films |
Il regista Mario Bolognini s’è ispirato al libro di Tobino per la realizzazione dell’omonimo film uscito nel 1975 con la colonna sonora di Ennio Morricone.
Il film di Bolognini si concentra interamente sul primo capitolo del romanzo di Tobino, attingendo però dai capitoli successivi per quanto riguarda i personaggi, ripropone infatti alcuni dei malati descritti da Tobino aggiungendo dettagli e peculiarità del tutto nuovi.
Il protagonista indiscusso del film è il Dottor Bonaccorsi, interpretato da Marcello Mastroianni, che diventa nella trasposizione cinematografica un uomo senza scrupoli e mosso dai propri interessi, in sostanza molto diverso dallo psichiatra descritto da Tobino come una persona brillante ed altruista. Il Bonaccorsi di Tobino resta in manicomio al fianco dei suoi malati finché le forze glielo permettono ed anche quando ormai anziano è costretto ad andarsene continua ad aspettare con impazienza le notizie che riguardano l’ambiente manicomiale; mentre il Bonaccorsi di Bolognini abbandona il manicomio quando l’assistente Bianca lo mette davanti a quella verità che aveva cercato in tutti i modi di nascondere anche a se stesso, ovvero che non era l’amore e l’interesse per i suoi pazienti a trattenerlo in quel luogo isolato dal resto del mondo, ma piuttosto la paura di essere pazzo come loro e come la sorella, ricoverata nel reparto delle Agitate. Proprio da questa paura nasce la sua ostinazione che lo porta a commettere errori grossolani pur di dimostrare la propria normalità e l’esistenza di una componente genetica responsabile della pazzia.
Un personaggio non presente nel romanzo e che assume invece un ruolo centrale nel film è la Dottoressa Anna Bersani (interpretata da Francoise Fabian) che si reca a Magliano per affiancare il Dottor Bonaccorsi; lavorando a stretto contatto con il Dottore, la donna viene a conoscenza di alcuni comportamenti inappropriati ed immorali che lo psichiatra ha sia nei confronti dei pazienti che in quelli dei colleghi, ed è inoltre la prima a comprendere la vera natura di Bonaccorsi ed il dubbio che l’assilla.
Per quanto riguarda i pazienti ritroviamo alcuni dei personaggi di Tobino tra cui il federale con delirio di negazione, il Meschi che riesce ad esprimersi soltanto attraverso la musica e la suora convinta che siano stati i bambini a corrompere Gesù.
Un’altra differenza sostanziale è la componente erotica molto presente nel film dove assume un’importanza quasi centrale, che è invece poco enfatizzata nel libro se non quasi del tutto assente. £¨Here)
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(EN)£ºDirector Mario Bolognini was inspired by Tobino's book to make the film of the same name released in 1975 with the soundtrack by Ennio Morricone.
Bolognini's film focuses entirely on the first chapter of Tobino's novel, drawing however from the subsequent chapters as regards the characters, in fact it re-proposes some of the patients described by Tobino adding completely new details and peculiarities.
The undisputed protagonist of the film is Doctor Bonaccorsi, played by Marcello Mastroianni, who becomes in the film adaptation an unscrupulous man driven by his own interests, essentially very different from the psychiatrist described by Tobino as a brilliant and altruistic person. Bonaccorsi di Tobino remains in the mental hospital alongside his patients as long as his strength allows him and even when he is now old and forced to leave he continues to wait impatiently for news regarding the mental hospital environment; while Bolognini's Bonaccorsi abandons the mental hospital when the assistant Bianca puts him in front of that truth that he had tried in every way to hide even from himself, that is, that it wasn't love and interest for his patients that held him back in that place isolated from the rest of the world, but rather the fear of being crazy like them and like his sister, hospitalized in the Agitate ward. It is precisely from this fear that his obstinacy arises which leads him to make gross mistakes in order to demonstrate his normality and the existence of a genetic component responsible for madness.
A character not present in the novel and who instead takes on a central role in the film is Doctor Anna Bersani (played by Francoise Fabian) who goes to Magliano to assist Doctor Bonaccorsi; working closely with the Doctor, the woman becomes aware of some inappropriate and immoral behaviors that the psychiatrist has both towards patients and colleagues, and is also the first to understand Bonaccorsi's true nature and the doubt that nags her.
As for the patients, we find some of Tobino's characters including the federal man with a delusion of denial, Meschi who can only express himself through music and the nun who is convinced that it was the children who corrupted Jesus.
Another substantial difference is the erotic component which is very present in the film where it takes on an almost central importance, which is instead little emphasized in the book if not almost completely absent.
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3-7 Excerpts from review articles |
3-7-1 (IT£© Returning to a literary source, Bolognini next adapted Mario Tobino’s novel Per le antiche scale ( Down the Ancient Stair, 1975). Set in a lunatic asylum in the 1930s, the film uses the clinical insanity of the asylum as a metaphor for the political insanity of the outside world. An illustrious doctor (Marcello Mastroianni) pursues wildly dysfunctional affairs with three women: the director’s wife (Lucia Bose) a suicidal depressive who rarely leaves the grounds; a doctor’s wife (Barbara Bouchet) a stylish but troubled nymphomaniac who smokes opium and enjoys ménages a trois with Fascist Black Shirts; a saintly nurse (Marthe Keller) who lets him humiliate and terrorise her in the nude. All three women consider themselves “normal” and the patients “sick”, as does Mastroianni – who turns out to be the biggest lunatic of the lot. The mise en scène glows with the lurid colours and sharp angles of a painting by Tamara de Lempicka – up until the end, when a tide of Fascist black engulfs the screen. As a portrait of psychosexual illness in a Fascist society, Down the Ancient Stair is a worthy (if more discreet) companion piece to Pasolini’s Salo (1975).£¨ Here) |
3-7-1 (EN) .....Returning to a literary source, Bolognini next adapted Mario Tobino’s novel Per le antiche scale (Down the Ancient Stair, 1975). Set in a lunatic asylum in the 1930s, the film uses the clinical insanity of the asylum as a metaphor for the political insanity of the outside world. An illustrious doctor (Marcello Mastroianni) pursues wildly dysfunctional affairs with three women: the director’s wife (Lucia Bose) a suicidal depressive who rarely leaves the grounds; a doctor’s wife (Barbara Bouchet) a stylish but troubled nymphomaniac who smokes opium and enjoys ménages a trois with Fascist Black Shirts; a saintly nurse (Marthe Keller) who lets him humiliate and terrorise her in the nude. All three women consider themselves “normal” and the patients “sick”, as does Mastroianni – who turns out to be the biggest lunatic of the lot. The mise en scène glows with the lurid colours and sharp angles of a painting by Tamara de Lempicka – up until the end, when a tide of Fascist black engulfs the screen. As a portrait of psychosexual illness in a Fascist society, Down the Ancient Stair is a worthy (if more discreet) companion piece to Pasolini’s Salo (1975)......¡£ |
3-7-2 (IT) Dans la Toscane des années 1930, le professeur Bonaccorsi, psychiatre réputé, mène des recherches sur la folie dans l'asile où il travaille. Une nouvelle venue, le docteur Anna Bersani, s'oppose très vite à ses théories.
En mêlant aliénation mentale et montée du fascisme, Bolognini s’interroge sur l’origine de la folie : pourquoi devient-on fou ? Où sont les fous ? Dedans ou dehors ? Tout en explorant le thème de la sexualité, le cinéaste étudie la propagation du mal dans une société en pleine déliquescence. L’univers sordide de l’hôpital psychiatrique est filmé avec délicatesse, dans des tons douceâtres et pastels (la scène d’ouverture est une fête costumée très fellinienne). Une splendeur formelle qui n’enlève rien à la violence du sujet, ni au jeu subtil des acteurs. « Ce fut pour moi une expérience passionnante, explique Bolognini, un film que j’aime beaucoup. Au début, la folie est quelque chose qui fait fuir. Pour raconter cette histoire, j’ai voulu que le public s’en approche non pas avec la répulsion que l’on ressent quand on entre dans un asile de fous, – la folie déforme tellement les choses que le premier instinct est de fuir –, mais avec une attitude de compréhension. (Here)
3-7-2 (EN) In Tuscany in the 1930s, Professor Bonaccorsi, a renowned psychiatrist, conducts research on madness in the asylum where he works. A newcomer, Doctor Anna Bersani, quickly opposed his theories.
By mixing mental alienation and the rise of fascism, Bolognini questions the origin of madness: why do we go crazy? Where are the crazy people? Inside or outside? While exploring the theme of sexuality, the filmmaker studies the spread of evil in a society in full decline. The sordid world of the psychiatric hospital is filmed with delicacy, in sweet and pastel tones (the opening scene is a very Fellinian costume party). A formal splendor which takes nothing away from the violence of the subject, nor from the subtle play of the actors. “It was an exciting experience for me,” explains Bolognini, “a film that I love very much. At first, madness is something that scares you away. To tell this story, I wanted the audience to approach it not with the revulsion one feels when one enters an insane asylum – madness distorts things so much that the first instinct is to flee – , but with an attitude of understanding.
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02-About the director Mauro Bolognini |
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![µ¼ÑÝ ÄªÂå ±«ÂÞÄáÄá(Mauro Bolognini)](http://morricone.cn/20G/images/emulemovies/014/bolognini/12215.jpg) |
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1922.6.28--2001.5.14 |
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Mauro Bolognini was born
in Pistoia, Tuscany.
A former architectural
student, Bolognini began his film career as an assistant
to director Luigi Zampa in Italy, and
directors Yves Allegret and Jean Delannoy in France. He began directing his own feature films
in the mid 1950s, and had his first international
success with Gli
innamorati ("Wild Love").
His other notable films
of the 1950s and early 1960s include Giovani
mariti ("Young Husbands"), La
notte brava, La
giornata balorda ("From a Roman Balcony"),
and the Marcello Mastroianni-Claudia Cardinale starrer Il
Bell'Antonio (arguably his masterpiece), all
written by Pier Paolo Pasolini.
Parting professionally
with Pasolini in 1961, Bolognini went on to direct
two sensual love stories starring Cardinale, La Viaccia and Senilità ,
before turning his talents to a series of international
anthology films, including Le bambole (The Dolls), I
tre volti ("Three Faces of a Woman"), Le
fate ("The Queens") and Le streghe (The Witches).
Returning to features
in the late 1960s with Mademoiselle
De Maupin, his later works included the accomplished
period dramas Metello and Bubu (both featuring Massimo Ranieri), Fatti
di gente per bene (La Grande Bourgeoise)
starring Giancarlo Giannini, Catherine Deneuve and Fernando Rey, L'ereditÃ
Ferramonti (The Inheritance) with Anthony Quinn and Dominique Sanda, and La Dame aux camélias featuring a young Isabelle Huppert.
In his later years, Bolognini
continued directing feature films, as well as opera
and the television miniseries The Charterhouse
of Parma and The
Time Of Indifference. His final feature was
the soft-core erotic drama Husbands
and Lovers, released in 1992.
He died in Rome in 2001. (Here) |
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Films directed and produced by Bolognini (more) |
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Metello |
L' Eredità Ferramonti |
La Villa del venerdì |
Le Plus vieux métier du monde |
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Fatti
di gente per bene |
La Storia vera della signora dalle camelie |
Per
le antiche scale |
Il Bell'Antonio |
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La Viaccia |
Le
Bambole |
Haunted Forest |
O
Enfermeiro |
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Nick and Jane |
Che Guevara: Hasta la Victoria Siempre |
Tainá 2 - A Aventura Continua |
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List of 15 Films Collaborated by Bolognini and Morricone |
6606 Le streghe/The Witches (Mauro Bolognini and more) (Episode: La Terra vista dalla Luna)
6702 Arabella
6824 Un bellissimo novembre ¼Ò
6905 L'assoluto naturale
6910 Metello
7210 Imputazione di omicidio per uno studente
7307 Libera amore mio
7402 Fatti di gente perbene
7509 Per le antiche scale
7603 L'eredità Ferramonti
7805 Dove vai in vacanza? - Episode: Sarò tutta per te
8006 La storia vera della signora delle camelie
8601 La Venexiana
8703 Mosca addio
9105 La villa del venerdi |
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£¨01£¬ 02£¬ 03£¬ 04£¬ 05£© |
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03 Scene screenshot |
000341 Extract from Mario Tobino's original work£º"Here, i wait: Glory is dead"£¬It seems to prompt the theme of this film |
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000421 The insane asylum is holding a carnival party |
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000940 A federal secretary was also sent to a madhouse, expressing doubts about the world and the leader |
![](../m-images/m-vp-movies-301/000940.jpg) |
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001732 The patients at the insane asylum started breakfast in the chaos |
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001855 Professor Bonacorsi, the chief physician, and Bianca, the assistant physician, began their day's work |
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002140 Dr. Anna Belsani came to the hospital for an internship |
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002411 A person who claimed to be a witch fell ill |
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003148 The dean's wife Francesca came to have a lover's rendezvous with Bonacorsi at night |
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004151 The doctors are discussing the causes of madness |
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005018 Bonacosi makes love in the studio of assistant doctor Bianca |
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005201 Bonacorsi sent Bianca to accompany patient Torio to the city for relaxation |
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005316 In the evening, Anna Belsani went to Kara's house to find her, but she didn't expect to see Kara flirting with Bonacosi indoors |
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005558 At the dinner party at the dean's house, Carla told the intern Anna that she had been sharing Dr. Bonacosi with Francesca and Bianca for many years |
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005921 Tonio went crazy again in the café after he came to town. |
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000134 Bonacosi went to the ward to visit Tonio and told him that he was researching new drugs |
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010832 Bonacorsi made new discoveries in his research, and he was very excited |
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011143 Bonacorsi came to tell the intern Anna Belsani and begged her for love, but was refused |
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011602 Anna Belsani refused, she rushed out the door, and Bonacorsi chased down the stairs |
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011720 Anna Bersani told him that she had examined his experiments and found that his experiments and conclusions were wrong |
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012740 Suffering from the severe blow of his career and the fear of madness, Bonacorsi decided to leave the insane asylum |
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012853 The dean’s wife, Francesca, committed suicide by jumping off a building because Bonaccorsi insisted on leaving. |
![](../m-images/m-vp-movies-301/012853.jpg) |
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013452 Leaving the madhouse and returning to the real world, Bonacorsi heard SS officers making crazy remarks on the train |
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04 Author's postscript |
Mauro Bolognini is a famous Italian film director. He directed a total of 46 films and a considerable number of plays in his lifetime. He was a protagonist of Italian culture after World War II. He was known as an internationally renowned director and a milestone in Italian cinema in the 1960s and 1970s. June 22, 2022 is the 100th anniversary of his birth. Italy has established a national commemoration committee to review his artistic works, re-examine and reposition the important role he played in the history of Italian film. The films directed by him have many characteristics: First, most of them are adaptations of famous works, and he is known as a master of adaptation. His most famous film "Metello", which he collaborated with Morricone, was adapted from the novel "Metello" of the same name by the famous Italian writer Vasco Pratolini. This film is adapted from the novel of the same name by Mario Tobino. The second is to pay attention to the elegance of the film. The scenery, costumes, and props are unique and even sculptural, which is eye-catching. This is related to his cultural background, having graduated from the Department of Architecture at the University of Florence; third, his movies always contain some erotic content, but most of the scenes are limited to an appropriate scale, as an Italian joke says: 'One foot in Church, One Foot in the Brothel", Called Pink New Realism. Fourth, he always cooperates with many big-name celebrities. Including the main actors, composers, photographers, costume and makeup artists and more. Such as Pasolini, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Marcello Mastroianni, Massimo Ranieri, Anthony Quinn, Sophia Loren, Catherine Deneuve, Crow Dia Cardinale, Ennio Morricone, etc. are all his good friends. In the 25 years from 1966 to 1991, he collaborated with Morricone on a total of 15 films, making him the director who has collaborated with Morricone on the most films. The reason why the author pays attention to this film first begins with Morricone's two concerts in China in 2009 and 2010. In an article I wrote for the comparison and research of Morricone’s 6 concerts in Europe, America and Asia from 2002 to 2010, I noticed that until the Beijing concert started in 2009, that is, after Paolonini’s death in 2001, In the 8th year, a "Tribute to: Mauro Bolognini " section appeared. This section contains two pieces of music, one is the theme song of the 1976 movie "L'eredita fferamonti / The Heritage", and the other is the theme song of the 1975 movie "Per le antiche scale / Along the Ancient Stairs" . The author believes that this phenomenon not only illustrates Morricone's friendship with Boronini, but also illustrates the importance Morricone attaches to the soundtracks of these films. As lovers of Morricone, we should certainly value these films and its music |
This film is derived from the novel of the same name by Italian psychiatrist and writer Mario Tobino (1910-1991). Tobino completed his medical degree in 1936, after which he began a career that lasted more than 40 years as a psychiatric hospital doctor, director, and scholar, striving to treat people with mental disabilities, to which he devoted all his moral and spiritual strength Psycho, continuing his activity as a writer, gaining ever-increasing fame and numerous awards. The novel was originally an autobiographical novel with a very positive and clear theme. However, Boronini's film of the same name made considerable changes to the original work, creating an illusion of confusion. It has been called " simultaneously one of the most aesthetically sophisticated and darkest films ever made" |
We can first take a look at the names of this film that appear in different countries |
Countries |
Original Name |
English translation |
Brazil |
O Segredo das Velhas Escadas |
The Secret of the Old Stairs |
France |
Vertiges |
vertigo |
Greece |
Katrakylontas sta palia skalopatia |
Tumbling down the old stairs |
Poland |
Po antycznych schodach |
Up the ancient stairs |
Portugal |
Vertigens |
Dizziness |
Spain |
Por las antiguas escaleras |
Along the ancient staircase |
Turkey |
Eski merdivenler |
old stairs |
UK, USA |
Down the Ancient Stairs |
Down the Ancient Stairs |
Uruguay |
Locura erótica |
erotic madness |
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Judging from the proportion, most countries use the term "stairs" (ancient, old), which implies a reciprocating movement up and down without an end, showing respect for the original work. Psychosis is an ancient, incompletely understood disease, with the earliest records coming from ancient Egypt, and a perfect treatment has yet to be found. At the beginning of the film, the words taken from the original work appear: "Here, I wait; glory is dead" which also highlights this theme. The author noticed that in the film, the scene of going up and down the stairs of the lunatic asylum appeared as many as 10 times. I can be sure that it was not accidental. They appeared at the following time points: 001313 and 001340, 001647, 003130, 010116, 011336, 011622, 011720, 011800 and 011946. The first and second times are at 001313 and 001340, 27 seconds apart, between the madhouse party and Professor Bonaccorsi's walk to start the day's work. Two consecutive occurrences. A blank scene, a half-light and half-dark space, where many puzzling stories will happen, can be seen as a foreshadowing of the entire film: |
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The fourth time (003130) was at night, when the dean’s wife Francesca came to have a tryst with Bonacosi while the dean was away |
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These scenes are concentrated in more than 6 minutes from the 6th to the 10th time (011336-011946). It mainly describes the serious antagonism between intern Anna Bersani and Professor Bonacosi, and Bonacosi's sudden fall from the altar after suffering a fatal blow in love and career. |
011336 Anna Bersani rejected Bonaccorsi's request for love, went to the laboratory to re-examine Bonacorsi's "discovery" and came to a negative conclusion. He seemed to feel heavy and went upstairs to find Bonacorsi. |
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011622Bonaccorsi once again made a strong show of courtship, and Anna rushed out of the door. Bonaccorsi chased him all the way downstairs, but was scolded by Anna |
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011720 During the chase and entanglement, Anna told Bonacorsi that after careful inspection, Bonacorsi's "discovery" was wrong. This gave Bonacorsi a fatal blow |
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011800 Bonacorsi was completely overwhelmed by this sudden blow. He was at a loss and panicked. He ran up and down the stairs and almost fell to the ground. |
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011946 Finally, he decided to go to the closed ward to see his severely mentally ill sister and say goodbye to her. The huge shadow on the staircase wall hints at his tragic and complete failure |
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Observe and think about these scenarios. The movie's use of the title "The Staircase" can be well explained. Although different countries' languages add different adverbs such as "down", "up", "along" and even "Tumbling down" due to different translation angles, their meanings are roughly similar and can be interoperated; this film uses least title is Uruguay's "Erotic Madness" (Locura erótica). Although the long-term "sharing without jealousy" between three women and one man in the film is astonishing and incredible, defining the entire film as pornographic madness is still biased and has too strong a commercial flavor, which is not appropriate. On the contrary, the titles Vertiges and Vertigens used by France and Portugal, I think, have merit. Because this film really makes people feel "dizzy": firstly, the various attack scenes of neurological patients make people "dizzy"; secondly, the long-term "sharing without jealousy" between these three women and one man makes people dizzy; thirdly, the protagonist's tragic ending makes people dizzy, and the fourth is the crazy remarks of Mussolini's fascist officer. If you think about it carefully, in fact, these four social phenomena are the real themes of this film directed by Boronini, which has greatly changed the original work. It more straightforwardly expresses what the director wants to say: human madness, and the madness of fascist society. Therefore, the author believes that the titles of France and Portugal seem to be more intuitive and accurate.¡£ |
The second reason why I pay attention to this film is its celebrity effect: director Bolognini, starring Mastroianni, music Morricone! The names of these three people are enough to support a famous film. It is a pity that today, in 2023, these three masters have passed away (2001, 1996, 2020), and we will never see such an outstanding combination again! Fortunately, modern science and technology have preserved their masterpieces intact, leaving us a treasure trove so that we can continue to hear and appreciate their legacy. I hope that all fans can take time to carefully appreciate and study these works after their busy work. Maybe you can find more truths from film and music, grow your talents, and make more contributions to society |
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05 Listen to Morricone's original soundtrack online |
001 |
Per Le Antiche Scale (Preludio) |
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002 |
Passato Remoto |
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003 |
I Interludio |
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004 |
Sospiri E Rantoli |
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005 |
II Interludio |
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005 |
Per Le Antiche Scale (Interludio) |
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006 |
Per Le Antiche Scale (Interludio) |
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006 |
Rimani |
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007 |
III Interludio |
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007 |
Per Le Antiche Scale (Interludio) |
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008 |
Seconda Invasione |
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009 |
Postludio |
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010 |
Follia E Morte |
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011 |
Rimanenze |
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012 |
Per Le Antiche Scale #2 |
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013 |
Carnevale |
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014 |
Sospiri E Rantoli #2 |
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015 |
Postludio #2 |
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016 |
Follia E Morte #2 |
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017 |
Per Le Antiche Scale #3 |
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The decompression password for the compressed file is morricone.cn |
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