The Wide Blue Road

Friday, December 10 - Sunday, December 12, 2010

THE WIDE BLUE ROAD (La Grande Strada Azzurra), is a remarkable debut feature directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, famed for The Battle of Algiers (1966) and BURN! (1969), only now receiving its US theatrical premiere — in a beautiful, newly restored print — thanks to the efforts of Jonathan Demme, Dustin Hoffman and Milestone Film.

Set in a fishing village off Italy’s Dalmatian coast, under a brilliant, turquoise sky, Montand plays Squarcio, a rogue fisherman who manages to feed his family by tossing bombs into the water to kill the maximum number of fish. When a new chief of police puts Squarcio’s illegal and dangerous exploits under closer scrutiny, his livelihood is threatened. Montand’s unforgettable, complex character is part working-class hero, part macho-cowboy, part 1950s sex symbol at sea.

• Country Italy
• Year 1957
• Running Time 99 minutes
• Director Gillo Pontecorvo

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