La marchande d'amour

"La Provinciale " (the title is revealing) displays the same hatred from the provinces as "Madame Bovary" ,Gustave Flaubert 's famous novel.Both Moravia's and the French writer's heroines are romantic girls ,who dream of a wealthy life ,in luxury,of a socialite's life ,in Roma or in Paris .Whereas Emma Bovary was born on a farm ,Gemma lives with her mom in a seedy apartment ,but she has privileged access to the aristocratic milieu :the viewer can wonder why,but actually her mother has a terrible secret to conceal.

The movie is well constructed:first,the scene of the dinner when Gemma tries to kill the "carnival" Comtessa ,as a character calls her ,a scene which will be shown again.Then a long flashback which shows the heroine's past and why she feels resentful towards this hateful fat woman for ,although she claims she is her friend,having been some kind of madam,for

even trying to blackmail her .Voices- over reveal the characters ' points of view:Gemma,her mother and her husband.The latter feels guilt although he did nothing really wrong: "I loved books more than my wife".This brilliant scientist,incidentally,is despised by these idle rich,just as Madame Bovary's husband ,a physician, was considered an oafish failure.

When he watches the dinner scene for the second time,the viewer feels the same hate for the false Comtessa ,as the camera stops at Gemma's face ,on the verge of a fit of hysterics.

Gina Lollobrigida proves that she was much more than a pretty face;Gabriele Ferzetti is convincing in a thankless part;but the stand -out is arguably Alda Mangina,who shines as the wife's evil genius.

Oddly enough, this is a version of a tale which was written by 20th-century Italian novelist Alberto Moravia. It looks. however, as if written much earlier, say, by 19th-century French novelists such as Zola or Balzac. Zola, especially. This is naturalism at its most, therefore a Zolaesque treat from beginning to end, including incest. Gina is The Provincial One of the original title, a kind of Belle de Jour avant la lettre. The production is sound, although director Mario Soldati had done better earlier jobs in 'OK Nerone,' even 'Il piccolo mondo antico.' Neo-realism plus star quality doesnt always work well as the cast are eventually miscast . Isn't Lollo too beautiful to go wayward and unsatisfied like this? Wasn't Ferzetti much more insatiable (and a better actor) in 'L'avventura,' where he had sex with Monica Vitti, then with Lea Massari, finally with some casual hooker?

This is a measured version, some might say 'too measured', of the novel by Alberto Moravia. It certainly takes a while to get going but once the characters are established it gathers momentum and keeps one gripped until the end. Technically the film is superb. The composition and framing is exemplary as one would expect with Mario Soldati as director and both G. R. Aldo and Domenico Scala behind the camera. The film is topped and tailed by the sounds of a piano played by a neighbour but the film is otherwise without music which is most effective. The characters are finely drawn. Elvira is a monster and is played with relish by Alda Mangini. Both Gina Lollobrigida and Gabriele Ferzetti were beginning to make their mark. She won the Golden Goblet for her portrayal of Gemma and he the Silver Ribbon as Franco. The best roles were still to come for Ferzetti of course but with the notable exception of Adriana in 'La Romana', whether the same applies to La Lollo is a moot point. All-in-all an immensely satisfying film that bears revisiting.