1.
Sugar refinery
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A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar into white refined sugar or that processes sugar beet to refined sugar. While cane sugar does not need refining to be palatable, sugar from sugar beet is almost always refined to remove the strong, almost always unwanted, the refined sugar produced is more than 99 percent pure sucrose. Whereas many sugar mills only operate during a time of the year during the cane harvesting period. Sugar beet refineries tend to have periods when they process beet but may store intermediate product. Raw sugar is processed into white refined sugar in local refineries. Sugar refineries are located in heavy sugar-consuming regions such as North America, Europe. Since the 1990s many state-of-the art sugar refineries have been built in the Middle East and North Africa region, e. g. in Dubai, the world´s largest sugar refinery company is American Sugar Refining with facilities in North America and Europe. The raw sugar is stored in warehouses and then transported into the sugar refinery by means of transport belts. Many sugar refineries today buy high pol sugar and can do without the affination process, the remaining sugar is then dissolved to make a syrup, which is clarified by the addition of phosphoric acid and calcium hydroxide that combine to precipitate calcium phosphate. The calcium phosphate particles entrap some impurities and absorb others, and then float to the top of the tank, after any remaining solids are filtered out, the clarified syrup is decolorized by filtration through a bed of activated carbon or, in more modern plants, ion-exchange resin. The purified syrup is concentrated to supersaturation and repeatedly crystallized under vacuum to produce white refined sugar. As in a mill, the sugar crystals are separated from the mother liquor by centrifuging. To produce granulated sugar, in which the individual grains do not clump together. Drying is accomplished first by drying the sugar in a hot rotary dryer, the finished product is stored in large concrete or steel silos. It is shipped in bulk, big bags or 25 –50 kg bags to customers or packed in consumer-size packages to retailers. The dried sugar must be handled with caution, as sugar dust explosions are possible, a sugar dust explosion which led to 13 fatalities was the 2008 Georgia sugar refinery explosion in Port Wentworth, GA. Molasses Bagasse Press Mud As in many other industries factory automation has been promoted heavily in sugar refineries in recent decades, the production process is generally controlled by a central process control system, which directly controls most of the machines and components. Only for certain special machines such as the centrifuges in the sugar house decentralized PLCs are used for security reasons
2.
Po Valley
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The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain is a major geographical feature of Italy. The flatlands of Veneto and Friuli are often considered apart since they do not drain into the Po, the plain is the surface of an in-filled system of ancient canyons extending from the Apennines in the south to the Alps in the north, including the northern Adriatic. Geo-political definitions of the valley depend on the defining authority, the Po Basin Water Board, authorized in 1989 by Law no. The law defines the Po basin as the territory from which rainwater or snow and glacier melt flows on the surface, the valley is crossed by a number of affluents running down from the Alps in the north and from the Apennines in the south. The Pos major affluents include the Tanaro, Scrivia, Trebbia, Panaro and Secchia in the south, Dora Riparia, Dora Baltea, Sesia, Ticino, Lambro, Adda, Oglio and Mincio in the north. Since the Messinian the system has been filling with sediment mainly from the older Apennines, the shoreline of the Adriatic depends on a balance between the sedimentation rate and isostatic factors. Until about 1950 the Po delta was prograding into the Adriatic, where the land surface now dips below sea level the river must run at a relative elevation between dikes. The Po Valley is often regarded as a syncline, or dip in the crust due to compression at the edges. Regardless of whether this concept accurately describes its geology, the valley is manifestly a sediment-filled trough, or virtual syncline, the upper areas of the Po valley take local names which reflect in their meanings their being modestly suited for farming. It varies from a few kilometres to as much as 50 km wide, the fontanili line is the outcrop, or intersection, of the anticlines water table with the surface at the edge of the bassa. The rock above the line is porous, surface water in the intermittent streams of the mountains tends to disappear below ground only to spring out again in the spring zone. The spring zone is called the middle valley. Surface runoff water is not of value to the valleys dense population for drinking and other immediate uses, being unreliable, often destructive and heavily polluted by sewage. Its main anthropic value is for power, irrigation and industrial transport. The cost of purifying it for consumption makes that process less feasible. The fresh drinking water comes from hundreds of thousands of wells concentrated especially in the fontanili zone, the older and smaller cities deriving from ancient times are still located there. The Po Valley has a subtropical climate. The conformation of the plain, surrounded by the Alps and the Apennines, the climate of the Po Valley becomes increasingly warmer and more humid farther south and east
3.
Ferrara
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Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 kilometres north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, the town has broad streets and numerous palaces dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, when it hosted the court of the House of Este. For its beauty and cultural importance it has qualified by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Modern times have brought a renewal of industrial activity, Ferrara is on the main rail line from Bologna to Padua and Venice, and has branches to Ravenna, Poggio Rusco and Codigoro. Ferrara appears first in a document of the Lombard king Desiderius of 753 AD, Desiderius pledged a Lombard ducatus ferrariae in 757 to Pope Stephen II. Obizzo II dEste was proclaimed ruler of Ferrara five hundred years later. He also became seignior of nearby Modena in 1288 and of Reggio in 1289, in 1452 the Este rulers were created Dukes of Modena and Reggio, and in 1471 Ferrara also became a duchy. In 1597, when Alfonso II died without heirs, the House of Este lost Ferrara to the Papal States. Ferrara remained a part of the Papal States from 1598 to 1859, with an interruption during the Napoleonic period, in 1859 it became part of the Kingdom of Italy. A fortress was constructed by Pope Paul V on the site of the castle called Castel Tedaldo, at the south-west angle of the town, all of the fortress was dismantled following the birth of the Kingdom of Italy and the bricks used for new constructions all over the town. On August 23,1944, the Ferrara synthetic rubber plant was a target of Strategic bombing during World War II, the town is still surrounded by more than 9 kilometres of ancient walls, mainly built in the 15th and 16th-centuries. Along with those of Lucca, they are the best preserved Renaissance walls in Italy, the imposing brick Castello Estense sited in the very centre of the town is iconic of Ferrara. The castle, erected in 1385, is surrounded by a moat, the pavilions on the top of the towers date from the 16th-century refurbishment. The City Hall, renovated in the 18th century, was the residence of the Este family. Close by it is the former Cathedral of San Giorgio, The Romanesque lower part of the main façade, according to a now lost inscription the church had been commissioned by Guglielmo I of Adelardi. The sculpture of the portal was signed by a Nicholaus. The upper part of the main façade, with arcades of pointed arches, dates from the 13th century, the recumbent lions guarding the entrance are copies of the originals, now in the narthex of the church. An elaborate 13th-century relief depicting the Last Judgement is found in the story of the porch
4.
Ravenna
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Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the city of the Western Roman Empire from 402 until that empire collapsed in 476. It then served as the capital of the Kingdom of the Ostrogoths until it was re-conquered in 540 by the Eastern Roman Empire. Afterwards, the city formed the centre of the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna until the invasion of the Lombards in 751, although an inland city, Ravenna is connected to the Adriatic Sea by the Candiano Canal. It is known for its well-preserved late Roman and Byzantine architecture, the origin of the name Ravenna is unclear, although it is believed the name is Etruscan. Some have speculated that ravenna is related to Rasenna, the term that the Etruscans used for themselves, the origins of Ravenna are uncertain. Ravenna consisted of houses built on piles on a series of islands in a marshy lagoon – a situation similar to Venice several centuries later. The Romans ignored it during their conquest of the Po River Delta, in 49 BC, it was the location where Julius Caesar gathered his forces before crossing the Rubicon. Later, after his battle against Mark Antony in 31 BC and this harbor, protected at first by its own walls, was an important station of the Roman Imperial Fleet. Nowadays the city is landlocked, but Ravenna remained an important seaport on the Adriatic until the early Middle Ages, during the German campaigns, Thusnelda, widow of Arminius, and Marbod, King of the Marcomanni, were confined at Ravenna. Ravenna greatly prospered under Roman rule, Emperor Trajan built a 70 km long aqueduct at the beginning of the 2nd century. During the Marcomannic Wars, Germanic settlers in Ravenna revolted and managed to seize possession of the city, for this reason, Marcus Aurelius decided not only against bringing more barbarians into Italy, but even banished those who had previously been brought there. In AD402, Emperor Honorius transferred the capital of the Western Roman Empire from Milan to Ravenna, at that time it was home to 50,000 people. However, in 409, King Alaric I of the Visigoths simply bypassed Ravenna, after many vicissitudes, Galla Placidia returned to Ravenna with her son, Emperor Valentinian III and the support of her nephew Theodosius II. The late 5th century saw the dissolution of Roman authority in the west, Odoacer ruled as King of Italy for 13 years, but in 489 the Eastern Emperor Zeno sent the Ostrogoth King Theoderic the Great to re-take the Italian peninsula. After losing the Battle of Verona, Odoacer retreated to Ravenna, Theoderic took Ravenna in 493, supposedly slew Odoacer with his own hands, and Ravenna became the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy. Both Odoacer and Theoderic and their followers were Arian Christians, but co-existed peacefully with the Latins, Ravennas Orthodox bishops carried out notable building projects, of which the sole surviving one is the Capella Arcivescovile. Theoderic allowed Roman citizens within his kingdom to be subject to Roman law, the Goths, meanwhile, lived under their own laws and customs
5.
Locarno Festival
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The Locarno Festival is an international film festival held annually in August in the city of Locarno, Switzerland since 1946. Locarno is a film festival accredited by the FIAPF, the main feature of the festival is the open-air screening area at the Piazza Grande with room for over 8,000 spectators, having one of the largest open-air screens in the world. The top prize of the Festival is the Golden Leopard awarded to the best film in the international competition, other awards include the Leopard of Honour for outstanding career achievements, and the Prix du Public UBS, the public choice award. The Locarno Film Festival is well known worldwide as a festival of discovery, throughout its history the festival has discovered new trends and launched the careers of numerous directors and actors. The Festival del film Locarno kicked off on 23 August 1946, Grand Prize of the festival, awarded by the city and region of Locarno, for the best film in the concorso internazionale, that is shared equally between the director and the producer. Prize, awarded by cities of Ascona and Losone, for the second best film in the concorso internazionale, Prize, awarded by the city and region of Locarno, for the best directed film in the concorso internazionale. Prize awarded by a jury of critics to the first works presented in the sections concorso internazionale, concorso Cineasti del presente, Fuori concorso, Signs of Life. Prize awarded to the best film of competition, which is dedicated to first or second features. Ciné+ Special Jury Prize – Cineasti del presente, the French television channel Ciné+ Club offers the broadcast rights to the winning film and guarantees the broadcast on their channel. Pardo per il miglior regista emergente, Prize for the best new director, pardo per la migliore opera prima. Prize which has been awarded fro 2006 to 2009 to the best first work screened in the concorso internazionale or concorso Cineasti del presente. Pardino doro for the Best International Short Film – SRG SSR Prize, Prize awarded to the best short film in the international short film competition Pardi di domani. Pardino doro for the Best Swiss Short Film – Swiss Life Prize, Prize awarded to the best short film in the national short film competition Pardi di domani. Pardino dargento SSR SRG for the international competition, Prize awarded to a film in the international competition Pardi di domani. Pardino dargento Swiss Life for the national competition, Prize awarded to a film in the national competition Pardi di domani. Locarno short film nominee for the European Film Awards – Pianifica Prize, the prize, which is offered by the studio Pianifica, goes to a short film made by a European director, presented in one of the two competitions. The award includes an automatic nomination in the film category of the European Film Awards. The prize provides equipment offered by Cinegrell, Visuals SA, Freestudios SA, the winning film will be subtitled in three central European languages
6.
Betsy Blair
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Betsy Blair was an American actress of film and stage, long based in London. There she met Gene Kelly, they were married the year, when she was seventeen years old. After work in the theatre, Blair began her career playing supporting roles in films such as A Double Life. She continued her career with theatre, film and television work until the mid-1990s. She joined the John Robert Powers modeling agency and by the age of twelve was in regular demand and she enrolled in the Professional Childrens School but, as it was not accredited, her mother returned her to her local school so that she might eventually attend college. She graduated at fifteen, securing a scholarship to Sarah Lawrence College, however, the Board of Admission considered her too immature for entry and requested she wait one year. He said I could dance, and he needed some good dancers, Blair and Kellys relationship blossomed, culminating in their marriage in October 1941. She and Kelly remained married for sixteen years and had one daughter together before divorcing in 1957, alton—who had previously discovered Gene Kelly—had spotted her when she unsuccessfully auditioned for a part in Louisiana Purchase. During this period she developed a strong interest in Marxism, having introduced to Lloyd Gough by Kelly, and attended Goughs weekly Marxist study group. Our textbook was The History of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, I was completely enthralled by the ideas. She continued to hold left-wing political views and admittedly attempted to join the Communist Party, in her autobiography, she revealed her application was rejected as the Party felt she would be more valuable as the wife of the progressive Kelly. Kelly himself was not a Communist and his status as a valuable star provided the couple some protection, in the 1950s, Blair was under investigation from HUAC and blacklisted for several years. She almost lost one of her roles, that of Martys girlfriend in Marty. For her performance, she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress and her film career, nonetheless, was damaged during the red scare era and she had to seek work on stage in New York and in Europe. By those years she became a conspicuous member of the avant la lettre European gauche caviar. Blair married Czech-born director/ producer Karel Reisz in 1963, and would perform sporadically in later years working with Costa-Gavras, in 1980, she was a member of the jury at the 30th Berlin International Film Festival. Blair filmed scenes for Stephen Daldrys The Hours, initially playing the version of Julianne Moores character. It is unclear if she was dropped or if she withdrew from the project, in 2003 she published her autobiography, The Memory of All That
7.
Red Desert (film)
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Red Desert is a 1964 Italian film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni and starring Monica Vitti with Richard Harris. Written by Antonioni and Tonino Guerra, the film is about a woman trying to survive in the world of cultural neurosis. The working title was Celeste e verde, Il deserto rosso was awarded the Golden Lion at the 25th Venice Film Festival in 1964. This was the last in a series of four films he made with Vitti between 1959 and 1964, preceded by LAvventura, La Notte, and LEclisse. In Ravenna, Italy, Giuliana is walking with her son, Valerio, towards the petrochemical plant managed by her husband. Passing workers who are on strike, Giuliana nervously and impulsively purchases a half-eaten sandwich from one of the workers and they are surrounded by strange industrial structures and debris that create inhuman images and sounds. Inside the plant, Ugo is talking with a business associate, Corrado Zeller. Ugo and Corrado converse comfortably in the noisy factory, Ugo tells Corrado that his wife, Giuliana, had a recent auto accident, and though she was physically unhurt, she has not been right mentally. That night in their apartment, Giuliana becomes highly agitated and fearful over a dream she had about sinking in quicksand, Ugo is unable to calm her or understand what shes experiencing. Attracted to Giuliana, Corrado visits her at an empty shop shes planning to open and talks about his life and she accompanies him to Ferrara on one of his worker recruitment drives, and she indirectly reveals details about her mental state. She tells him that when she was in the hospital, she met a woman patient who was advised by her doctors to find someone or something to love—a husband, a son. She speaks of the young woman feeling like there was no ground beneath her, like she was sliding down a slope, sinking and they travel to a radio observatory in Medicina, where Corrado hopes to recruit a top worker. Surrounded by cold industrial architecture, Giuliana seems lost in her loneliness and they spend time in the shack engaged in trivial small talk filled with jokes, role-playing, and sexual innuendo. Giuliana seems to find solace in these mindless distractions. During their conversations, Corrado and Giuliana have grown closer, and he shows interest, like Giuliana, Corrado is also alienated, but he is better adapted to and accepting of his environment, telling her, You wonder what to look at, I wonder how to live. When a doctor arrives to board the ship, Giuliana, seeing that the ship is now quarantined due to an infectious disease and her unwillingness to stay, or to return to the shack to retrieve the purse she left behind, underscores her state of alienation from the others. Sometime later, Ugo leaves on a trip, and Giuliana spends more time with Corrado. One day she discovers that her son has become suddenly paralyzed from the waist down
8.
Alida Valli
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Valli was born in Pola, Istria, Italy. Vallis mother, Silvia Oberecker della Martina, born in Pola, was the daughter of Felix Oberecker from Laibach, Austria, her mother was Virginia della Martina from Pola, Vallis maternal granduncle, Rodolfo, was a close friend of Gabriele DAnnunzio. Valli was christened Baroness Alida Maria Laura Altenburger von Marckenstein-Frauenberg, during her lifetime she also gained the titles Dr. h. c. of the III. University of Rome, Chevalier of Arts of France and Cavaliere of the Italian Republic, at fifteen, she went to Rome, where she attended the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, a school for film actors and directors. At that time, she lived with her uncle Ettore Tolomei, Valli started her movie career in 1934, in Il cappello a tre punte during the so-called Telefoni Bianchi cinema era. Her first big success came with the movie Mille lire al mese, during the Second World War, she starred in many movies including Stasera niente di nuovo and the diptych Noi Vivi / Addio Kira. These latter two movies were censored by the Italian government under Benito Mussolini, but they were finally permitted because the novel upon which they were based was anti-Soviet. The films were successful, and the public realized that they were as much against Fascism as Communism. After several weeks, however, the films were pulled from theaters as the German and Italian governments, but her foreign experience was not a great success, owing to the financial problems of Selznicks production company. She returned to Europe in the early 1950s, and starred in many French, in 1954, she had great success in the melodrama Senso, directed by Luchino Visconti. In 1956, Valli decided to stop making movies, concentrating instead on the stage and she was in charge of a company that produced Broadway plays in Italy. In 1959, she appeared in Georges Franjus horror masterpiece Les Yeux sans visage and her final movie role was in Semana Santa, with Mira Sorvino. At the 54th Venice International Film Festival in 1997 Alida Valli obtained the Golden Lion award for her career, when Valli came to the United States, she was billed by only her last name to make her sound even more exotic. In 1951, she complained that she disliked the single-name reference, I feel silly going around with only one name, she said. People get me mixed up with Rudy Vallée and her teenage love, Carlo Cugnasca, was a famous Italian aerobatic pilot. He served as a pilot with the Regia Aeronautica and was killed during a mission over British-held Tobruk on 14 April 1941. Among the accused – all of whom were acquitted, leaving the case unsolved – was Vallis lover, Valli married Oscar de Mejo in 1943 and filed for divorce from him in 1949, but they reconciled. She had two sons with him, another official statement by the Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi read, La scomparsa di Alida Valli è una grave perdita per il cinema, il teatro e la cultura italiana
9.
Blowup
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Blowup, or Blow-Up, is a 1966 British-Italian film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni about a fashion photographer, played by David Hemmings, who believes he has unwittingly captured a murder on film. It was Antonionis first entirely English-language film, the film also stars Vanessa Redgrave, Sarah Miles, John Castle, Jane Birkin, Tsai Chin and Gillian Hills as well as sixties model Veruschka. The screenplay was by Antonioni and Tonino Guerra, with English dialogue by British playwright Edward Bond, the film was produced by Carlo Ponti, who had contracted Antonioni to make three English-language films for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The film was scored by jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, the music is diegetic, as Hancock noted, Its only there when someone turns on the radio or puts on a record. Nominated for several awards at the Cannes Film Festival, Blowup won the Grand Prix, the American release of the counterculture-era film with its explicit sexual content by a major Hollywood studio was in direct defiance of the Production Code. Its subsequent outstanding critical and box office success proved to be one of the events that led to the final abandonment of the code in 1968 in favour of the MPAA film rating system. In 2012, Blowup was ranked No.144 in the Sight & Sound critics poll of the worlds greatest films, the plot is a day in the life of a glamorous fashion photographer, Thomas, inspired by the life of an actual Swinging London photographer, David Bailey. He grows bored and walks off, leaving the models and production staff in the lurch, as he leaves the studio, two teenage girls who are aspiring models ask to speak with him, but the photographer drives off to look at an antiques shop. Wandering into Maryon Park, he takes photos of two lovers, the woman is furious at being photographed. The photographer then meets his agent for lunch, and notices a man following him, back at his studio, the woman arrives asking for the film, but he deliberately hands her a different roll. She in turn writes down a telephone number to give to him. His many enlargements of the black and white film are grainy but seem to show a body in the grass. He is disturbed by a knock on the door, but it is the two again, with whom he has a romp in his studio and falls asleep. Awakening, he finds they hope he will photograph them but he tells them to leave, saying, Tomorrow. As evening falls, the photographer goes back to the park and finds the body of a man, the photographer returns to his studio to find that all the negatives and prints are gone except for one very grainy blowup showing the body. A buzz in Becks amplifier angers him so much he smashes his guitar on stage, then throws its neck into the crowd, the photographer grabs the neck and runs out of the club before anyone can snatch it from him. Then he has thoughts about it, throws it on the pavement. A passer-by picks up the neck and throws it back down, however, the photographer cannot put across what he has photographed
10.
The Passenger (1975 film)
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The Passenger is a 1975 film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni. David Locke is a television journalist making a film on post-colonial Africa. To finish the film, he is in the Sahara desert seeking to meet with, struggling to find rebels to interview, he is frustrated when his Land Rover gets hopelessly stuck on a sand dune. Locke decides to switch identities with Robertson, he is tired of his work, his marriage and his life, and sees an opportunity for a fresh start. Posing as Robertson, Locke reports his own death at the front desk, where the hotel manager mistakes Locke for Robertson, in London, Lockes wife Rachel has been having an affair. She feels guilt-ridden and torn when she is informed of her husbands death and she approaches Lockes friend, Martin, a producer at the BBC, in an attempt to get in touch with Robertson so that she may learn more about her husbands last days. Meanwhile, Robertson has flown off to Europe with the dead mans belongings, Locke soon learns that Robertson was gunrunning for the rebels whom, as a reporter, Locke had been trying to contact in the desert. When he goes to out a airport locker listed in Robertsons diary. He is there to complete the weapons sale, later Locke accidentally spots Martin on a street in Barcelona, as the latter tries to track Robertson down on behalf of Rachel. Locke backtracks and at this point bumps into a student while trying to hide nearby. He asks her to fetch his belongings from the hotel, so he wont be there by Martin who camped out to catch up with Robertson. Martin overhears that she is collecting Lockes baggage, and requests him to take her to meet Robertson and she manages to evade him, and join with Locke who leaves off Barcelona. They become lovers, and later, while trying to explain his rather odd behaviour, Locke is flush with cash from the down payment on the arms he cannot deliver, yet he is drawn to keep the meetings listed in Robertsons note book. In the meantime, Rachel has received his left behind belongings, having heard from Martin of his unsuccessful chase of the elusive Robertson, Rachel is shocked as she opens Lockes passport, to see Robertsons photo pasted inside. Having realised why Robertson was so elusive, Rachel now heads off to Spain to track down Locke, the student girl is however loyal to Locke and helps him to evade, providing rational advice, but Locke sends her away, intending to reunite later in Tangiers. Taking her time, she wanders the dusty parking out, while the agents in pursuit of Robertson arrive at the hotel. There Lockes assassination takes place, mostly off screen, in long take, the rebels leave the scene minutes before the police arrive with Rachel, to find Locke motionless in bed. There his wife says to the agents, she never knew the dead man
11.
Monica Vitti
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Monica Vitti is an Italian actress best known for her starring roles in films directed by Michelangelo Antonioni during the early 1960s. After working with Antonioni, Vitti changed focus and began making comedies and she has appeared opposite Marcello Mastroianni, Richard Harris, Terence Stamp, Michael Caine and Dirk Bogarde. Vitti won five David di Donatello Awards for Best Actress, seven Italian Golden Globes for Best Actress, the Career Golden Globe, and she toured Germany with an Italian acting troupe and her first stage appearance in Rome was for a production of Niccolò Machiavellis La Mandragola. Vittis first film role was in Edoardo Antons Ridere Ridere Ridere but her first widely noted performance was at the age of 26, in Mario Amendolas Le dritte. Giving a screen presence which has described as stunning she is also credited with helping Antonioni raise money for the production. Lavventura made Vitti an international star and one of Italys most famous actresses of the 20th century and her image later appeared on an Italian postage stamp commemorating the film. Vitti received critical praise for starring roles in the Antonioni films La Notte, LEclisse and Il Deserto Rosso, after her relationship with Antonioni ended, the two did not work together again until Il mistero di Oberwald. Vittis made only two English language films, the first was Modesty Blaise, a mod James Bond spy spoof with Terence Stamp and Dirk Bogarde which had only mixed success and received harsh critical reviews. The other English film was Michael Ritchies An Almost Perfect Affair with Keith Carradine which takes place during the Cannes Film Festival, in 1970 Vitti starred with Marcello Mastroianni in Ettore Scolas highly successful romantic comedy Dramma della gelosia. In 1974 she won the David di Donatello award for Best Actress in Alberto Sordis Polvere di stelle and she starred in Luis Buñuels innovative Le Fantôme de la liberté. This is often considered her last great film, throughout the later 1970s and early 1980s Vitti appeared mostly in Italian films which did not gain international distribution. Even though Il mistero di Oberwald is noted for the last collaboration between Vitti and Antonioni, it is not as known as LAvventura. After this movie was made, Vitti did not do as much screen work, in 1989 however, Vitti tried writing and directing and created Scandalo Segreto, which she also starred in. The film was not a success and she retired from cinema. By 1986 Vitti had returned to the theatre as an actress, during the 1990s she did television work, acting and directing. In 1993 Vitti was awarded the Festival Tribute at the Créteil International Womens Film Festival, Michelangelo Antonioni and Vitti met in the late 1950s, and their relationship grew stronger after LAvventura was made, because it had shaped both their careers. However, by the late 1960s, they did not make any movies together, in a later interview, Vitti stated that Antonioni ended their relationship. They made the film Il mistero di Oberwald together in 1981, in 1995 Vitti married Roberto Russo, with whom she has lived since 1975
12.
Zabriskie Point (film)
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Zabriskie Point /zəˈbrɪski/ is a 1970 American drama film directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, widely noted at the time for its setting in the counterculture of the United States in the late 1960s. Some of the scenes were shot on location at Zabriskie Point in Death Valley. Zabriskie Point was the second of three English-language films that Antonioni had been contracted to direct for producer Carlo Ponti and to be distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, the other two were Blowup and The Passenger. Zabriskie Point was a commercial failure, and was panned by most critics upon release. It was once considered to be one of the worst films of all time and its critical standing has increased, however, since its release. It has to some extent achieved cult status and is noted for its cinematography, use of music, in a room at a university campus in 1970, white and black students argue about an impending student strike. Mark leaves the meeting after saying he is willing to die, but not of boredom for the cause, following a mass arrest at the campus protest, Mark visits a police station hoping to bail his roommate out of jail. He is told to wait but goes to the area, asks further about bail for his roommate, is rebuffed, calls out to the arrested students. He gives his name as Karl Marx, which a duty officer types as Carl Marx, after he is released from jail, Mark and another friend buy firearms from a Los Angeles gun shop, saying they need them for self-defense to protect our women. In a downtown Los Angeles office building, successful real estate executive Lee Allen reviews a television commercial for Sunny Dunes, instead of actors or models, the slickly produced commercial features casually dressed, smiling mannequins. In the next scene Allen talks with his associate about the greater Los Angeles areas very rapid growth as the two drive through crowded streets, Mark goes to a bloody campus confrontation between students and police. Some students are tear-gassed and at least one is shot, as Mark reaches for a gun in his boot, a Los Angeles policeman is seen being fatally shot, although it is unclear by whom. Along the way Daria is searching for a man, who works with emotionally disturbed children from Los Angeles. While filling its radiator with water, she is spied from the air by Mark and he throws a T-shirt out of the window of the aircraft for her to pick up. Daria goes from upset to curious and smiling during this sequence and they later meet at the desert shack of an old man, where Mark asks her for a lift so he can buy gasoline for the aircraft. The two then wander to Zabriskie Point, where they love and the sites geological formations seem to come alive in a dusty orgy. Later, a California highway patrolman suspiciously questions Daria, Daria asks Mark if he was the one who killed the cop in Los Angeles. He states that he wanted to, but someone else shot the officer first, getting back to the stolen aircraft, they paint it with politically charged slogans and psychedelic colors
