A specil program by Anton Giulio Mancino
There are films that present themselves simply with their title, and others that carry with them the name of their author as an inseparable part of their identity. Federico Fellini’s films belong, quintessentially, to the latter category. There is, therefore, no film merely called Il Casanova, which would then require the clarification “by” Federico Fellini. Rather, it is seamlessly Il Casanova di Federico Fellini, a title that is itself an homage to Fellini’s artistic mastery. This film unfolds as a self-declared “misadaptation,” crafted in collaboration with writer and screenwriter Bernardino Zapponi, of Histoire de ma vie by Giacomo Casanova.
To misadapt Casanova—deliberately clashing with him—is what makes this masterpiece, from its very title, stand apart from the extensive filmography devoted to the character. In fact, the Treviso-born writer Giovanni Comisso, when condensing the nearly three thousand pages of Casanova’s autobiographical novel for Longanesi in 1976—spurred by the buzz surrounding Fellini’s "subversive" adaptation—described Casanova as follows: “Friar and schemer, man of letters and pimp, actor and cabalist, gambler and philosopher—but ultimately, always and above all, an ideologue of the boudoir and advocate of free love. The real Casanova is no more sordid than many other heroes, nor more heroic than each of us. He is simply ‘real.’”
It is difficult, then, to overlook the film’s layered dimension—both critical and self-critical—as a broad reflection of a certain Italian identity, which Fellini fully embeds in his Casanova. This interpretation was explored by Elio Benvenelli, a scholar who taught French at the University of Venice, in his essay Analisi di una messa in scena. Freud e Lacan nel “Casanova” di Fellini (Dedalo, 1979).
But it is now impossible to view Il Casanova di Federico Fellini without considering another film—one that, for obvious reasons, preceded it: E il Casanova di Fellini? (1975). This work, by Liliana Betti and Gianfranco Angelucci—an author deeply Fellinian to the core—was modestly labeled a “television special.” Yet, it is indeed “special” in every sense: a precious piece of work whose documentary component elevates to the highest degree that delightful and unmistakably fabricated material of which Fellini was both master and mentor.
Together with Betti, Angelucci also curated two essential publications: the screenplay and production materials of the Fellinian film, published by Cappelli in 1977; and an earlier, separate volume, Casanova, rendez-vous con Federico Fellini (Bompiani, 1975), which notably includes in its appendix the dialogues and screenplay of E il Casanova di Fellini?.
So, what exactly is this little film? It is a collection of stories of potential Casanovas arriving at Fellini’s court, seeking to embody the long-standing icon of the illustrious Venetian: Alberto Sordi, Alain Cuny, Ugo Tognazzi, Vittorio Gassman, and Marcello Mastroianni. Fellini tests and discards them, treating them as raw material for his imagination. Yet, Angelucci, by preserving these screen tests, gives them a fully realized cinematic form—one that stands alongside Donald Sutherland, who was ultimately chosen to embody and “misadapt” Casanova.
A biographer, friend, and close collaborator of Fellini, Angelucci has dedicated three indispensable works to the ever-expanding library on the creator of Il Casanova di Federico Fellini: Federico F. (Avagliano, 2000), Segreti e bugie di Federico Fellini (Luigi Pellegrini, 2013), and Glossario felliniano. 50 voci per raccontare Federico Fellini, il genio italiano del cinema (Avagliano, 2020). These works testify to a bond that transcends reality, entering a mystical, spiritual, even supernatural dimension.
Anton Giulio Mancino
Il Casanova di Federico Fellini – Fellini’s Casanova (1976) - Federico Fellini
Film of 1976, directed by Federico Fellini and winner of the Oscar for best costumes. It is about the life of Giacomo Casanova, a man of pride and literary ambition. Young Venetian seducer who after his escape from the prison of Piombi, travels both through Italian and foreign cities, always accompanied by his fame. It’s about his sex stories, important (and disappointing) friendships, the sordid decadence. A film that has caused much discussion.
"I desperately clung to this "emptiness of vertigo" aroused by the reading of Histoire de ma vie, as the only point of reference for telling Casanova and his non-existent life." Federico Fellini (From the page - Wild Trails)
E il casanova di Fellini? (1975) - Gianfranco Angelucci:
Italian documentary produced by Gianfranco Angelucci, 75 minutes. Defined as: "the variation on a film yet to be made", where Federico Fellini subjects actors and friends to imaginary auditions for the role of Casanova, improvising between the studios of Cinecittà, waiting for the final project that will see the light only one year later.
The living myth of Fellini was such that, while waiting for the 1976 project to go ahead, RAI decided to produce this documentary that investigated the contents of the film and the character of the famous Venetian amateur. The tone is that of the investigation, but the film proceeds between the serious and the facetious involving actors and writers. Among the many: Marcello Mastroianni, Alberto Sordi, Ugo Tognazzi. (From page - FilmTV.it)
Among the sets of Fellini’s Casanova, whose filming was interrupted for lack of funds and whose future was uncertain, actors and ordinary people are interviewed about "casanovism". Tognazzi is trying a vintage recipe, Mastroianni plays with his fame as a Latin lover and Sordi... simply remains Sordi. (From the page - Il Davinotti, Il Correggibile)
Federico Fellini wanders around the studios of Cinecittà, subjecting actors and friends to imaginary auditions for the role of Casanova. It’s Olympia Carlisi. Screened at the Venice Film Festival 2008 as part of the retrospective "These ghosts: Italian cinema rediscovered (1946-1975)". (From page - MyMovies.it - Cinema on the part of the public)
