The Law (1959)

The Law (1959) – A beautiful young woman uses every tool given to her to make her way in a corrupt Italian fishing village.  All the villagers are caught between the legal authority of the Don, and the local crime boss.

Directed by Jules Dassin                                     Starring Gina Lollobrigida, Marcello Mastroianni,                                                                                                          Yves Montand

Might as well get this out of the way right up front.  This movie is primarily about sex.  Which is not to say it’s particularly graphic by modern standards.  But the lust bubbling just under the surface of the village of Porto Manocore is the coin of power (as it so often has been).  Marrietta (Lollobrigida) is the most beautiful woman in the village (and let me get this out of the way too.  She is stunningly beautiful here.  Smart, smoldering hot and sensual.  You absolutely buy that every man wants her), and is using that power to control her world.  She is a member of the family that are the servants of Don Cesare, the local landowner, and minor aristocrat.  Other than to hunt, Don Cesare never leaves his house.  He is working his way through the women of the family as his bed companions.  Marrietta is the youngest and next in line.  Meanwhile, out in the streets, the real power in town is Matteo Brigante, played with brilliant sneering smoothness by Yves Montand.  Mastroianni is given top billing as the romantic lead for Lollobrigida, but his part is mostly comic and light.

Poster with the original French title

“The Law” is the name of a game, officially prohibited, that sets the pecking order in town.  It is a drinking game based on the utter humiliation of all but two of the players.  Brigante and his sidekick have long been masters in the game.

My first inclination was just to dismiss this movie as a sexy, soap opera.  As the movie progresses, it begins to show a little more depth.  The struggle for the soul of the village that grows out of the various storylines is very affecting.  Jules Dassin does a masterful job of bringing us right into the lives of that village.  It is the tiny nuances that matter in such a small community.  The final comeuppance for Brigante is so subtle, I wonder how many viewers will miss it.  There’s an equally subtle piece of storytelling at the very beginning.  We know instantly the economic state of Porto Manocore simply by looking at one man’s pants.  There is no heavy-handed “look, look” feel to it at all.  It’s there.  All you have to do is notice it.  Really wonderfully done.

This movie was released in the U.S. under the title “Where The Hot Wind Blows”

I watched the original French version with English subtitles.

Why You Will Like It: GINA LOLLOBRIGIDA. Oh, and some deftly done direction, and the outstanding work of both GINA LOLLOBRIGIDA and Yves Montand.

Rating – **** Recommended