Indiscretion of an American Wife
Short description
While vacationing in Rome, married American Mary Forbes begins an affair with an Italian man, Giovanni Doria. When the time comes for her to leave Italy and return to her husband and daughter in Philadelphia, Giovanni tells her he loves her and does not want her to go. The two spend their final hours wandering Rome's Termini railway station, where Mary must decide whether to board her train or abandon her old life for a new romance. Their time together is complicated by a run-in with the police over a kiss in a parked railcar.
Vittorio De Sica directed this drama, released in 1953, working from a screenplay by Cesare Zavattini, Giorgio Prosperi and Luigi Chiarini, and producing as well. It followed Umberto D. in his filmography and marked his fifth feature as director. Jennifer Jones and Montgomery Clift lead the cast as Mary and Giovanni, with Gino Cervi, Richard Beymer, Paolo Stoppa and Nando Bruno among the supporting players.
An Italian-American co-production from Columbia Pictures, Produzioni De Sica and the Selznick Releasing Organization, the film runs just over an hour. On IMDb it holds a critics' rating of 6.1/10 from 14 reviews, while on TMDB it has a rating of 5.9/10 from 59 votes, indicating modest approval from both critics and audiences rather than a strong consensus.
What's left behind the scenes
- The construction of the 'Termini' station in Rome was completed just before filming began. The film was planned as a kind of presentation of the new structure. Initially, it was assumed that it would consist of several short films, the action of which takes place in the station building.
- Director Vittorio De Sica (full name – Vittorio Domenico Stanislao Gaetano Sorano De Sica, 1901-1974) did not speak English. Therefore, he chose an Italian actor, explained to him where and how to stand and what to say, and then asked him to convey to actor Montgomery Clift (1920-1966) to portray the same. Clift refused this method of communicating with the director.
- Producer David O. Selznick (1902-1965) was terribly unhappy with how the work on the film was going, and especially with how Vittorio De Sica was handling the source material. Selznick dictated lengthy letters of instruction and recommendations to the director every day, even though De Sica did not understand a word of English.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
