Careful, Oreste. The devil will take you.
I'm not afraid of the devil. He's red, like me.
And when I die...
- Who lives here? - Attila Mellanchini.
He's really come up in the world.
- He lives here alone? - No, with his beloved Regina.
The most envied couple in the whole valley.
- Really? - Yes.
Merry Christmas, Signorina Regina!
What are you doing out there in the cold? Come inside.
Merry Christmas, Signora Pioppi! We don't want to be late for Mass!
We can have a drop to warm ourselves, then we can all three go together.
Oh, she's really crazy.
First, she cuts me down in public, then invites us for a drink.
- Marvelous. - Maybe she's trying to make up to us.
What difference does it make?
Well, aren't you coming?
Let's see what it's like inside.
Merry Christmas, Mr. Mayor.
You're making fun of me.
They'll elect you one of these days.
You're still a young man.
Young and strong.
Everything is so artistic, just like being abroad.
The house is perfect for a real lady.
Very elegant. Very...
Very tasteful.
Do you really think so?
Come and see the living room.
- What is she doing? - I told you, she's mad.
Caught you, didn't I? Now you'll have to listen to me.
I'm the one doing the talking now.
You want to get out?
Then you'll have to sign a paper saying this house will remain mine.
Attila! Attila, look!
You got that mortgage from my husband with threats,
with political blackmail!
You made his heart give out.
You tormented the poor man until he died.
"It's all so artistic, as if you were abroad."
Made to order for a high party official, isn't it, Mr. Black Shirt?
But now I've got you trapped and I'll not let you go.
You're not leaving here.
This house is mine and it'll stay mine.
"Made in
"Czechoslovakia."
Sinners. Rogues.
Concubine! Concubine!
You see? I told you. She called you a concubine.
If we don't get married soon,
we'll be the laughingstock of the whole countryside.
The radio doesn't work.
You've harmed me for the last time.
What has my poor cat done to you?
Murderers.
That's what you are, murderers.
Murderers! Murderers! Murderers!
Murderers.
Signora Pioppi, calm down.
Open the door. You're really hysterical.
What are you talking about?
All these silly accusations.
If you just open the door, we can talk it over.
We're respectable people, Signora Pioppi.
Admit it, I look nice in the coalman's hat.
- You look irresistible. - Yes.
But I prefer you in my hat.
Who are these people?
Oh, they must be coming from midnight Mass.
What's going on?
A robbery.
What was there to rob? She was full of debts.
Poor people. They had to mortgage everything,
the land, the villa, everything.
Who has the mortgage?
Oh, my God!
Everything she owned is mortgaged to Alfredo Berlinghieri.
What do mortgages have to do with it? This was obviously a sex crime.
She was still a very handsome woman. She undoubtedly had some relationship.
- Merry Christmas. Signorina. - Good evening, Commissioner.
Mortgages.
I wouldn't be surprised if this weren't the act of a crazed, jealous lover.
It could be anyone, possibly someone right here.
She probably led him on,
then spurned him.
With his lust aroused,
he possibly raped her.
Then this murder.
Maniacs. Communists. Perverts.
May I take a look?
There, you see? No underwear.
Why does a woman take off her underwear?
Why?
Coward.
Ada! Ada!
Olmo! Olmo!
Olmo!
What is this? Why do you have a lock? What do you have to hide?
- Why do you lock yourself in? - I lock others out.
Where's my wife?
That's enough! Get out of here!
- Olmo! - Get out of here.
- I'm sorry. I... - Get out of here!
- What's he want? - His wife.
You'll wake up the children.
I'm sorry. I don't know what's the matter with me.
I don't know, I'm not feeling well. I think I have a heart condition.
- Feel my heart. - What heart?
You're just sick in the head.
Oh, maybe you're right. I don't know.
I'm going crazy. Ada's gone. I don't know where she is now.
And you come looking for her in my bed?
What's so wrong about that?
- What do you mean? - You know what I mean.
- Go on. - You know what I mean.
Go on!
Oh, I think it's very, very, very possible because I think you like her.
Yeah.
You're right.
And she likes me.
We fuck and fuck, fuck all the night.
But it's not enough for her, not enough.
It seems she wants to stuff this salami up her ass.
Oh, Olmo, stop acting like a pig. You're really not funny.
I don't understand how you could talk like that.
If you knew what I was going through tonight, you wouldn't.
They killed that wretched widow, Pioppi.
There's such violence here. It's all around us.
I don't know.
It would have to happen tonight, just as Ada and I were finally able to talk.
We were so close after so long. It was just like in the beginning.
She saw all that blood and she ran away.
As if it were my fault. I mean, I don't know what I had to do with it.
Who gets the widow's house?
The property?
They'll imprison some poor devil who's done nothing.
Call him a communist.
There are too many innocent people who have died, Alfredo.
And you'll soon see more and more and more.
And there are too many in jail. And it's you.
It's you and others like you who wanted it.
It's you.
I'm happy you have a woman in the house.
Your daughter needs a mother.
She only came for Christmas.
Her husband is in jail.
Has it never occurred to you why so many of your friends
are in jail and not you?
You, of all people, who should have been the first to end up inside?
Because I have stopped Attila, that's why.
Because I have made him drop his bone.
If you protect me, it's been in your interest.
That's right. Go on, insult me. Insult your old friend.
If I protect you, it's because I care about you.
Don't you remember we used to catch frogs together?
You remember how beautiful it was along the ditches in the summer, huh?
I caught the frogs, you ate them.
Come on.
Come on, you hole-in-the-pocket socialist.
Don't you remember anything?
Yes, yes, I remember.
I remember your wedding day.
And I remember I was beaten up.
And I remember you stood and watched.
You also remember when you broke into my father's house
and when you stole his gun?
And if you're so courageous, why haven't you ever used it?
To get killed? Is that what you want?
Enough talk, Alfredo.
Go home. You'll find Ada there.
- You really think so? - Sure, sure.
Take this, just in case.
Stick it up yours!
Ada?
Ada? Ada.
Ada, open the door. Are you all right?
Say something. Ada! Ada!
Open the door or I'll break it down.
Ada? Ada, are you all right?
Are you all right, Ada?
Ada, say something at least.
It's not my fault, Ada. Please, open up.
It's not my fault.
Listen, we'll take a trip. We'll go to Paris.
Wouldn't you like to do that?
We can leave tomorrow. We can even leave now if you want.
We'll have a child. We'll have a child!
The most recent communiqué from an Axis Army...
I've just seen Aunt Ada.
Be a good girl now. Come, I made it sweet for you.
- Just the way you like it. - Nicolo, come have your lunch.
Come on.
One more like a good girl.
The allied forces are fighting desperately to keep their hold
on the Kasserine Pass.
With the help of Italo-German air power,
our gallant soldiers have breached the pass in several places,
turning northward in the direction of Tébessa and Thala.
So, you saw your Auntie Ada?
I mean it. I mean it.
Don't talk nonsense.
Ada is dead. Dead, dead, dead.
Why do you say she's dead?
She's in a room. Caged beast.
She eats the hearts of bad children.
...and 66 heavy artillery pieces of various caliber.
Hail the Duce, people.
This is what is known as the fascist miracle.
We don't need those cart horses anymore.
We put the power of 50 horses in one machine.
They're sold, did you hear?
Time's up.
Hey, Barone!
Barone, what's the use of those cart horses?
Unless you got a stable hand.
You need a stable hand, Barone?
Seems fit. Any family?
Widower. One daughter.
It all depends. How much are you selling them for?
Barone, I give you the best deal in the world.
Barone's a good man. You'll be very happy with him.
So I'm sold, too?
Part of the contract.
Horses, horseman, horse manure.
You all hear? I was sold.
To that merchant there. Stupid beast!
I can't be milked, though. Or be fed with hay.
I can't provide milk or make a meal of grain.
For I'm not a beast.
Only a peasant.
A peasant like you men. Understand?
Can they buy us for nothing?
Is a peasant for sale?
Is it just?
Well, tell me, is it just?
Olmo, tie the horses to the back of the motorcycle,
get your daughter, and get going.
Horse manure!
Horses go in horse manure!
Shit! Shit! Let it out.
Don't hold back, for God's sake, shit! I'm gonna wait, come on.
What about Il Duce?
He's full of shit, too!
God bless us, a full behind.
Look. Look at all the shit.
The greatest load of horse shit and dung.
- It stinks. - Here comes another load!
Go ahead, everybody! Laugh!
You little shit! It's all right! It's all right!
- Here, we can begin to change things. - Hey, Barone!
Make him eat it, Olmo! Horse shit pie!
Milk and wine give you lines. Tell your padrona.
Tell her milk on the tongue keeps you young.
Stupid.
Ciao, Teresita.
- Hurry, Olmo, before it's too late. - On your way, Olmo.
- God knows what Attila will do. - Olmo, there is no time.
Yes.
- Stay away until you're sure it's safe. - Don't worry about the house.
- I want to go with you. - No, it's better if you go to Stella's.
- Please. Take me with you, please. - Be good. Be good. You promised.
All right, take the key. Take the key. It's yours.
- All right. I'll come back. - Yes.
I'll come back. I'll come back.
- Here, you need it more than I do. - Thank you. Thank you.
Now, listen, you'd better keep your doors locked,
and don't go out alone.
- Thank you. - Ciao, Olmo.
- Goodbye, Olmo. Come back soon. - Ciao.
- Take care of yourself, Olmo. - Yes. Be prepared for the worst.
- You carry our blessings. - Write to us. Send us word.
- Let us know how you are. - Good luck, Olmo.
Here, Olmo, take this. Goodbye. Be careful.
We'll see you soon. Don't let them get you, Olmo.
Good luck, Olmo.
Signora Ada, I have a new story for you.
- And today it's a true story. - Wait. Wait. Wait.
What happened was Attila wanted to sell Olmo.
- Sell Olmo? - Yes.
Attila bought a new tractor for the farm and was showing off.
And so then he said horsemen are finished,
and if it'd be of any use, he'd sell Olmo along with the horses.
- Nobody helped Olmo? - Yeah, they all did.
And then you know what happened? It began to rain.
- What? - Yeah, it rained horse manure.
Horse manure, all over Attila. His nose, his eyes. All over.
- Even on his bald head. - On Regina, too?
No, but they'd have gotten her, too, had she been there.
Then they massaged all the horses' asses and got a lot of fresh shit.
And after that, Attila smelled like a pigsty.
But then, all of a sudden, the farmers were scared,
and Olmo left on his bicycle.
- Olmo ran away? - Yeah.
Attila will come with his fascists.
Everyone cried when Olmo left, signora.
But he wanted to go. He was free. Don't you understand?
- No, he was sad. - Oh, you're stupid.
You're in a fog. He was happy.
Poor Olmo had to leave his daughter and had to leave his house.
He wasn't glad at all.
What do you know? You know nothing.
- You're leaving, too, signora? - I'm leaving, yes. And for good.
Everybody's going.
I won't need these. You can have them.
This, too. Here, take this.
And this.
This.
Here, take this.
Signora,
could I have a kiss, too?
Come here.
Anthony!
Attila!
Come down here immediately!
Anthony, there are books in the other room.
Right away.
Attila!
Signor Alfredo, you've heard about it. The bastard's run off to...
Who asked you to come here? Who gave you the right to do this?
Right? He's a communist organizer.
I don't care if he's a communist or not, he's a friend of mine.
A friend of yours?
That friend stole this gun from your father 15 years ago. Look.
It's taken you a long time to find it.
I would have found it sooner if I'd been allowed to do my job.
You've done your job. Your services are no longer needed here.
What?
Listen, everybody, I fired him. I fired the foreman.
Can you hear me? I fired Attila.
Ada, it's me.
I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't be here,
but I have something very important to tell you.
I know you're going to be very happy.
I've done it. I've fired Attila. It's over.
- She's gone, padrone. Gone. - Gone?
- Where did she go? - She won't return anymore.
- Where did she go? - No more.
She said you'd understand if I dressed up in this.
Swim!
Take a look! Take a look!
You're all gonna end up like that! Like sewer rats!
Go on, scream, you shit!
Cover his face in it!
Orio!
Oh, he's dead.
Breasts. Unrighteous breasts.
- You filthy rotten fascist! - Cover yourself, you dirty bitch.
- Cover up! - Here, fire it, bastard!
Pig! Bastard! Pig!
All right, turn back.
Temesio!
- Temesio, does God exist? - No!
Attila!
Does that bastard Mussolini exist?
Temesio?
- Does Il Duce exist? - No!
- The Duce doesn't exist! - Kill him.
You move and I'll kill you.
Attila. Neither do you exist, Attila.
Stop that whistling. Stop it.
I can kill all of you whenever I want to so you can whistle till your mouths rot.
I don't give a damn for any of you.
Anthony.
Let's get out of here.
You're shit! Scum!
You're a disgrace to the Italian nation.
You are the shit of Italy!
25th of April 1945 Liberation Day
Fight, comrades, in the name of Stalin.
- The Black Shirt bandits are here. - Come on, everyone, over here.
Let's wipe them out, rip their guts.
Every last one of them.
Here, Manzalone, they're just beyond the canal.
Grab these, go on.
- Hurry up! - Kill every one of them.
Anita!
Anita, what can you see there?
I can see...
I can see a bunch of fascists. They're running away.
One of our men's running after them. He's alone.
Anita, I'll bet it's my Wildcat. God bless him.
He's only got a stick but, by God, he's giving it to them.
He's really giving it to them. If you could only see them, women!
Come on, harder!
Harder now! Kill them all!
Have you lost your tongues? Shout, women, shout!
Let our men hear us! Come on, shout!
- You kill him. - Louder!
Louder!
Blessed are the young who see what isn't there.
Hundreds of German soldiers are running off, leaving for good.
If you could only see this, too. They'll never come back.
They're throwing away their guns and their uniforms.
Oh, God.
- What do you see? What is it? - A huge cloud of dust.
A man on a white horse.
He looks like...
Like Olmo.
If only it was Olmo.
Let his soul be at rest.
Attila and Regina.
Attila and Regina!
Shoot, Attila! Shoot!
Bitches!
Stinking bastard!
Kill her!
Throw her in the shit!
Die, you fascist cow!
Fascist pig!
- Kill her! - Move, women.
Move out of the way. Let's take them to the sty.
Put this shit with the other pigs!
Now you know what a pigsty is like!
No, you can't come through.
You can't come through.
The sty is too good for them!
Hey, Comrade!
Is it true you're giving the land to those who'll work it?
Who is she?
- Have you ever seen her? - I've never seen her.
I said, is it true you're giving the land to those who'll work it?
Yes. Come on! Come on!
Let's go.
Come on, you blockheads.
Oh, how many there are.
Who are you? No one knows you,
and yet you speak words we've always wanted to hear.
This man is Carnellio, and I am Rondina, his wife.
We come from the mountains.
The Nazis, they burned everything, all our houses.
And the fascists, they took all our goods.
I say, first of all, we have to give them a place to sleep.
Best let us sleep inside the sheds here.
No, the shed is for vagabonds.
And the house is where comrades stay.
Pigsties are for the fascists.
Everything will be fine.
So glad that I shall die
And yet I'm sorry
I'm so sorry that I die
So I won't worry
Shut up, you gravedigger!
Who goes there?
The people's committee for community swine allotment.
More pigs than I ever saw.
Come here, my beauty.
Oh, let me kiss you.
Come, another. I need another kiss.
Oh, let me touch you, you're so beautiful.
Let me get on you.
- I want to spend the whole night... - Can't you show pity?
Bastards! Bastards!
13, 14, 15,
16, 17, 18.
And with those two sitting there, it's 20.
Just a moment, comrades. My heart's heavy in me.
Abolishing the padrone's rights will make me feel
100% better, I can tell you that.
Then I guess we must be idiots.
Nobody can make out what you're saying.
Take a look at all these pigs in here.
Prosciutto, salami, sausage, feet and knuckles, and lard,
and mortadella. Who do they belong to now?
Listen here, you'll own all the animals.
Socialism can bring it all to you.
How do I know that socialism is really going to feed me?
And what my heart is heavy for is those two souls there.
All the Dalcos step forward.
You others from the mountains ruled by priests,
instead of wallowing in ignorance, try beating your head three times
to let in socialist ideas.
- What do you want to do? - You heard him.
So did you, about beating your head.
Why beat our heads three times? What did he mean?
Beating your head makes no sense.
Look at him.
I can see you're a man of feeling.
Help him.
Don't you see he is dying like a pig?
Help him.
In the name of humanity.
Look, right there is where my grandfather's buried.
"Patrizio Avanzini,
"tender flower plucked by the cruel hands of destiny."
Cruel hands of destiny.
Destiny's hands.
My hands.
The cruel hands of destiny.
Regina.
Our children will harvest the seeds we have planted, Regina.
You are as ugly as sin.
- Get away! - Don't cut her hair!
Don't cut her hair!
PIERO PIOPPI DIED AS HONESTLY AS HE LIVED
IDA CANTA ELLI widow of PIOPPI GOOD AND SAINTLY WOMAN
OFFENDED BY THE CRUELTY OF TIME
"Canta Elli Pioppi.
"Good and saintly woman, offended by the cruelty of time."
I am that cruel time.
Me. I killed that crazy bitch.
And that little turd, Patrizio.
Me, Attila Mellanchini.
Fascist.
Man.
Pigs.
Scum.
Shits.
Turd.
Stop that music! This is not a dance hall!
You have no respect for our dead!
Look, everybody.
Come here, everybody!
- Who is that? - I don't know.
Kill me. Kill me!
Kill me, quick. Kill me.
Kill me.
Kill me!
- Get away. - Kill me.
Be careful. Watch from behind here.
Don't look when a lady is pissing.
Halt. No one can pass here.
Go on.
- Who is that? - It's the padrone. He is my prisoner.
Why are you holding him here in this stall?
I'm waiting for the partisans.
It takes a pretty smart boy to fool with such a gun.
Go, Marina. You be the first one up. Careful you don't fall.
- Paint out all the fascist slogans! - Paint everything out!
- Throw the paint on! - Brush out. Brush out everything!
No! No, wait! That goose is mine!
That's my goose! It's mine!
Where are you going? Give it to me! Give it back!
If it's yours, then it's everybody's. It can't be yours if it's everybody's.
Did you have to pick mine to be everybody's?
Make it redder! Put more red on!
Stop tickling.
Stupid ass.
Cut it out.
I'll kill you.
Will you look who's here? We forgot all about our padrone.
Even forgot to arrest him.
Good for you, Leonito. Good boy.
The children have more imagination than we do.
Excuse me, padrone, I held my hand back so long, it escaped on its own.
And my foot escaped, too.
Are you Olmo?
I hand you my prisoner.
Bravo.
Hey, are you sleeping?
Ada never came back, you know.
- You'd rather she were dead, huh? - Well, at least you came back.
Are you sure we hid it here?
- I hereby declare... - Give me the paint.
...the people's trial of Alfredo Berlinghieri,
padrone and therefore enemy of the people, now open.
I declare the people's trial of the padrone open.
- How did you know it was there? - Because I hid it.
I hereby declare the people's trial of Alfredo Berlinghieri,
padrone and therefore enemy of the people, now open.
Sit down here. This is going to be good.
My feet are killing me but I don't want to miss the show.
- Do you know when... - She didn't come back
because if she had, she'd have stood trial with you.
Do you know when she ran away? She ran away the day that you ran away.
She's cleverer than you.
You stayed to be the padrone right to the end.
What are you writing, Anita?
- We're not in school now. - Give us a hand, Anita.
This is a people's trial. What's there to write?
Comrades, what's done is worthy of being written down,
and what is written down is worthy of being read.
Just a minute.
- Oh, look at our flags! - All our flags together!
That one belonged to the Workers' League, remember?
Me and Rosina sewed them. It got bigger every year.
Olmo, I know we're ignorant,
but how can we have a trial without a lawyer?
I bring you the accused and you ask me for a lawyer?
I mean, isn't that enough?
But we are the ones who caught him, not you.
No, you didn't catch him, either.
He surrendered to Leonito right after he saw his gun.
Yes, you're right.
Lift it high! Higher!
Let's dance! Come on!
- Dance. - Get away.
Dance! Come on.
Dance!
When a mute begins to speak, he has much to say,
but the poor man is tongue-tied, as well.
It's all right. Speak with your heart, old man.
Stop the music.
I lost them harvesting your wheat for 60 years.
Can you make good now? Can they be returned?
Why did all these teeth drop out?
The padrone's are still there, all shined up.
He's able to munch with them all day long.
We made money for you and you spent it.
- You're washed and we're filthy. - You rest while we work.
You had plenty in your stomach in the famine.
You're just a leech but your old grandfather was even worse.
It's true. After a hailstorm, he wanted to fire all the day laborers.
He wasn't the one. It was his papa, Giovanni.
He's the son. It makes no difference. A padrone remains a padrone.
All land needs laborers, otherwise it would go to ruin.
But the padrone? Does anyone need the padrone?
I have one thing to say. I've never hurt anyone.
All the padrone claim the very same thing.
And they're such big hypocrites, they think it's true.
I have never hurt anyone.
To be able to say that, you've taken criminals out of prison
and put communists in their place?
Listen to me, comrades.
Fascists don't spring up someday like mushrooms, all in one night.
No. Fascists are the padrone's offspring.
Inventions of the padrone.
And with these fascists, they began earning more and more.
So much that they had to put their fortunes to use,
and that's how war was invented.
For we were sent to Africa, Russia, Greece,
Albania, and Spain.
But did they pay? No, we're the ones that paid!
The proletariat, the peasant, the workers!
You paid for it!
He pays now! He pays now!
Do you hear that, Alfredo Berlinghieri?
You hear the voice of the people?
We, the ignorant hicks
who die of starvation,
will set an example here in this miserable asshole of the world.
We sentence you to death.
We condemn you and the past condemns you.
That's it, comrades.
No more padrone.
The padrone is a dead man.
I'm very tired. May I sit down?
I'm very tired.
If I understand it right, we're looking at a dead person.
Yes, he thinks he's alive, and for us the man's dead.
He doesn't exist anymore.
The man's alive. His body's on fire.
Usually, the dead grow cold.
Olmo, you learned how to speak better than a peasant.
Here.
But you should explain with simple talk.
That educated talk can play tricks.
The padrone is dead but Alfredo Berlinghieri is alive.
And we mustn't kill him.
But why not?
Because he's the living proof that the padrone's dead.
And now let's vote. Who agrees, raise your hands.
Comrades, the partisans!
The partisans are coming.
Partisans.
Comrades, the partisans.
The partisans are here.
Hey, comrades.
Silence. Silence, please.
Come over here, everybody!
I have an important communication to make.
Everybody, come over here!
- Hey, let me look at it! - Give it to me! Give it to me!
- An American gun! - Give it to me. Let's see.
We have come here in the name of the Committee of National Liberation.
We represent the Christian democrats,
we represent the liberals,
we represent the socialists,
we represent the communists and the action party.
This Committee for the Liberation of Italy...
- Sit down. - ...has assumed power temporarily,
for the purpose of maintaining law and order in the country.
And so, dear friends, I ask you to adhere
to the decision of the National Committee for Liberation
and turn your arms over to us.
- No! - Those are the orders!
Comrades, victory is like when you're drunk.
- No! - Yes!
When you drink, you say what you feel in your heart.
- It's a trap, Olmo. - Everything seems to be new for you.
No, it's the old story. I'm not going to fall for it.
The moment of truth arrives and it demands that everyone must get sober,
and put your head and heart under the faucet and stop drinking.
- They're double-crossing us. - Yes.
But, please, all right...
Those guns belong to us! It's all bullshit!
Why give them the guns? They belong to us all.
Tomorrow they'll call it utopia. That's fine!
But remember, if there's evidence to persuade us
that the padrone's still there, we must say no anyway.
Because we know, we saw, all of us.
We know the truth. The padrone's dead!
Hey, boy, didn't you hear the orders?
No! Give it back to me! It's my gun!
Give it back! It's mine! It's mine!
Give it back! It's mine! Give it back to me!
The padrone's alive.