General della Rovere (Il generale Della Rovere)

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Cast

Vittorio De Sica
as Victorio Emanuele Bardone/Grimaldi

Hannes Messemer
as S.S. Colonel Mueller

Vittorio Caprioli
as Aristide Bianchelli

Guiseppe Rossetti
as Pietro Valeri

Ivo Garrani
as Fabrizio

Sandra Milo
as Valeira

Giovanna Ralli
as Olga

Anne Vernon
as Chiara Fassio

Baronessa Barzani
as Contessa della Rovere

Otto Messmer

Kurt Polter
as German officer

Kurt Selge
as Schrantz

Mary Greco
as The Madam

Nando Angelini

Lucia Modugno
as The prostitute

Linda Veras
as German attendant

Max Allan Collins

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Critic Reviews for General della Rovere (Il generale Della Rovere)

Audience Reviews for General della Rovere (Il generale Della Rovere)

• May 17, 2011

  This one took me by surprise. Instantly my favourite Rosselini, it might not be as raw as his earlier movies but the scenario is just so good and the charismatic Vittoria De Sica shows that he is just as talented in acting as in directing. Loved every second of it!
  William H Super Reviewer
• Feb 26, 2010

  In "General Della Rovere," Colonel Grimaldi(Vittorio De Sica), retired, makes his first appearance just after curfew ends in occupied Genoa at 6:00 am when he helps Nazi Colonel Mueller(Hannes Messemer) with a flat tire. Grimaldi just blew the money that was intended to bribe a Nazi Sergeant(Herbert Fischer) to ensure the release of a prisoner on gambling which he always loses at. And his trophy girlfriend Valeria(Sandra Milo) has nothing for him, intending to leave anyway, and any attempts to sell a fake jewel prove fruitless. Enter the piano tuner. While some might criticize "General Della Rovere" for getting off to a slow start before the plot eventually kicks in, I think it is more a case of a carefully told study of a character who could be viewed as something of a scoundrel, cad, con man, or thief.(Did I leave out anything?) However, what is most important about Grimaldi is that he does not just pocket all of the money; he does try and help his fellow Italians with his innate charm by bribing Nazis(in wartime, everybody has their roles to play.) who after five years of war are worn down and possibly see the writing on the wall.(The Sergeant wants to be paid in cash.) There is literal writing in the notices the Nazis post, promising death for everything more severe than spitting on the street(as you can see, Grimaldi has lots of business) which is only a small part of the arresting images(including some archival footage) that director Roberto Rossellini uses to create a powerful tale of occupied Italy during World War II while avoiding easy sentimentality.
  Walter M Super Reviewer

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