Rome Open City Movie Review

Rome Open City [Roma Città Aperta] (1945)

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Written by: Sergio Amidei (screenplay), Federico Fellini & Roberto Rossellini (collaboration on screenplay), Sergio Amidei (story), Alberto Consiglio & Roberto Rossellini (additional material)
Directed by: Roberto Rossellini
Starring: Anna Magnani, Aldo Fabrizi, Marcello Pagliero 
Rated: --
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Plot
Italian resistance leaders try to evade the Nazi's during the 1944 occupation of Rome.

Verdict
Amazing look at Italy and the resistance. The underlying story is really good, but the execution is rather dry. This movie lacks the style and tension you would find in a modern movie. I'm surprised this hasn't been remade and/or updated as a modern film. The underlying story is really good, but the execution combined with subtitles makes it the type of movie you'd see in a cinema history class.
It depends.

Review
The story is told very straightforward and the cinematography is simple. Italy is occupied by the Nazis and the resistance is doing what they can in opposition.
Women steal food, children plant bombs, men are on the run, and even the priests help hide weapons. The Germans are trying to capture two resistance leaders, Manfredi and Francesco.
Franceso is set to be married, but his fiance is gunned down the day before the wedding. Her priest is praying for her soul instead of presiding over the ceremony.
Manfredi's former girlfriend gives him up for a fur coat.

Rome Open City - Extremely bleak.

Manfredi is capture, tortured, and killed. The Germans are surprised that an Italian could withstand the abuse and not break. The torture scenes show very little, much less than a modern movie would, but just hearing the man's scream makes your imagination create something even worse. It's very effective. Without any information from Manfredi, the Germans arrest his former girlfriend and take her coat.

The priest is sentenced to execution. The Italian soldiers in the firing squad intentionally miss. The German commander takes his pistol and executes the sentence. It's a harrowing conclusion that fits the movie well.

This movie was made before Italy was even rebuilt. Was the magnitude of the war even known? Is that something you can know so soon after?