Category Archives: 1963

The Leopard (1963)

From NetFlix:

In this war drama set in 1860s Sicily, Prince Don Fabrizio Salina (Burt Lancaster) attempts to hold onto the glory he once knew, while his nephew, Tancredi Falconeri (Alain Delon), has joined opposition forces and is being heralded as a war hero. As Falconeri begins to fall for Angelica (Claudia Cardinale), the daughter of the town’s new mayor, Don Calogero Sedara (Paolo Stoppa), Salina must learn to accept his changing political status.

Garibaldi landed in Sicily in 1860 (at the time of our civil war). Burt Lancaster (speaking Italian) is a Sicilian prince who can never adjust to the new egalitarian order. The film beautifully recreates the book. But the pace is very slow and you really might have to be motivated to watch this film. In my case I read “Il Gatopardo” in Italian.