Massacre in Rome (Remastered Edition)

Product Description Torn from the pages of history comes the true account of one of the most devastating massacres in the chronicles of modern warfare. March 1944. With the fortunes of war turning against the Third Reich, Nazi-occupied Rome is a hotbed of dissent from the growing resistance movement. When the Roman underground ambushes a column of SS military police, killing 33, the German High Command orders the execution of 10 Roman citizens for each of its fallen soldiers. MASSACRE IN ROME unites two of the greatest cinema icons of the 1960s. Marcello Mastroianni (LA DOLCE VITA, 8½) stars as Roman priest Pietro Antonelli, ordered by the Pope to collaborate with Nazi Lt. Colonel Herbert Kappler (Richard Burton, of WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?), charged by Hitler with the duty of rounding up 330 civilians for execution. Dedicated to pacifism, Antonelli must choose whether to defy the Pope’s orders and aid the resistance or remain true to his vows and watch his countrymen slaughtered by the SS. This Carlo Ponti production was the second film by director George Pan Cosmatos (RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II), and benefits from a tense, searing score from Ennio Morricone. NoShame Films presents for the first time ever a deluxe 2-DVD edition. MASSACRE IN ROME is a commanding, disturbing historical drama of rebellion, heroism and sacrifice by men and women who loved freedom more than they feared death. Amazon.com Both suspenseful and thoughtful, the 1973 Massacre in Rome is based on tragic events that took place in 1944 as the Nazi war machine was beginning to come to terms with its eventual failure. Richard Burton plays SS Lt. Col. Herbert Kappler, stationed in Rome at the time of a sneak attack on German troops (leaving 32 dead) by Italian partisans. Kappler, both educated and realistic, resists demands by his immediate superior (Leo McKern) and the High Command to retaliate by shooting a multitude of locals, whether or not they had anything to do with the deaths. Kappler, and other Third Reich officers, sees the killing of the 32 as miniscule compared to losses the Germans are enduring every day in a losing battle against the Allies. A severe punishment against Romans, Kappler reasons, would be both petty and shortsighted, heightening Italian anger over the German presence. But Hitler himself insists, leaving Kappler with the impractical and unpleasant task of finding 320 Italians to kill in cold blood. Meanwhile, a Catholic priest and art restorer (Marcello Mastroianni), whom Kappler both admires and distrusts, is shielding the partisans and exacerbating the conflict Kappler feels between his duty and his civilized self. Produced by Carlo Ponti (The Passenger) and directed by George P. Cosmatos (Tombstone), Massacre In Rome is both an action movie and a drama of great moral complexity, exploring such tricky issues as the Vatican's cooperation with German looting of Italian art and antiquities. A rich score by Ennio Morricone and a second disc full of special features, including old interviews with Cosmatos and Mastroianni, make this a memorable experience. --Tom Keogh P.when('A').execute(function(A) { A.on('a:expander:toggle_description:toggle:collapse', function(data) { window.scroll(0, data.expander.$expander[0].offsetTop-100); }); }); Review it is a diamond in the rough that sits nicely with the rest of titles NoShame have released so far -- 10kbullets, December 21st, 2005 See more