De Seta in 'Scope
A quintet of contemplative short dispatches from the provinces of Sicily that forswear the explanatory narration then de rigeur in documentary—so much the better for viewers to give themselves over to the often hypnotic rhythms of ancient traditions which De Seta found surviving intact in the mid-20th century. Featuring Golden Parable, which depicts the frantic activity of harvesters in Sicily’s flaxen wheat fields; Sea Countrymen and Sulphur Mines, respectively condensed days in the life of a community of tuna fishermen and colliers; Islands of Fire, a lyric portrait of life on a seaside village in the anticipation and aftermath of a volcanic eruption; and Easter in Sicily, in which Christ’s execution and resurrection is festively enacted for the camera.
Parabola d'oro / Golden Parable (1955, 11')
Contadini del mare / Sea Countrymen (1955, 11')
Isole di fuoco / Islands of Fire (1955, 11')
Surfarara / Sulphur Mines (1955, 11')
Pasqua in Sicilia / Easter in Sicily (1955, 10')
Restored by the Cineteca di Bologna at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory and The Film Foundation, with funding provided by the George Lucas Family Foundation.
Distributor: Janus Films
4K DCP