Visionary Picks Drawn from the Same DNA as Pas de femmes: Cult Guide

Dir: Mario Bonnard

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Il trattato scomparso perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A fascinating piece of cinema that shares thematic elements.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

The sisters Jola and Claire are saved from a burning ship, the former is brought up by a priest on a volcanic island ; the latter reaches Paris and becomes a plunderer of men. Her ruined lover is saved from suicide by an eccentric doctor who organizes a treasure-hunt expedition. They reach the island ; the last remnant of submerged Atlantis. Here the disconsolate one encounters Jola, the image of his lost love. The adventurers are attacked by escaped convicts. The volcano, long quiescent, erupts. The wicked perish. The lovers, with wealth incalculable, escape to Paris.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Der goldene Abgrund perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

A sympathetic bandit chief supports the cause of freedom in Naples against the Bourbon King Ferdinand.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

A sympathetic bandit chief supports the cause of freedom in Naples against the Bourbon King Ferdinand.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Fra Diavolo perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Shy tenor Marcello is afraid to sing in public. Two of his friends think of having an elegant youth on the stage pretending to sing while Marcello sings behind the curtain. The scam is successful, but after a while Marcello summons the courage to go on stage himself.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

This Alpine thriller is based on the story of English climber Edward Whymper who vies with Jean-Antoine Carrel, an Italian mountain guide, to conquer the Matterhorn.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Fra Diavolo perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

An Alpine adventure-romance.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

Based on the famous historical novel by Alessandro Manzoni, and set between 1628 and 1630 in Lombardy "northern Italy" during the Spanish domination, tells of the contrasted marriage between the two young textile workers Renzo and Lucia. The 1922 version is the most ambitious and spectacular film in all Italian silent cinema, with remarkable mass scenes and some images that triggered the censorship.

Dir: Mario Bonnard

An elderly couple, Papa Martin and his wife Genovieffa, have a son, Armando, and a goddaughter, Amelia. When they both return home at the end of their studies to celebrate Armando's law degree, Papa Martin is confronted by Charençon, Armando and Feliciano's neighbor and loan shark, who not only demands repayment of his money, but also reveals that Armando's degree is fake.