The Tree of Wooden Clogs
Encyclopedia
The Tree of Wooden Clogs is a 1978 Italian film written and directed by Ermanno Olmi
. The film concerns Lombard
peasant life in a cascina
(farmhouse) of the late 19th century
. It has some similarities with the earlier Italian neorealist
movement, in that it focuses on the lives of the poor, and the parts were played by real farmers and locals, rather than professional actors. It won fourteen awards including the Palme d'or
at Cannes
and the César Award for Best Foreign Film
. The original version of the movie is spoken in Bergamasque
, an Eastern Lombard dialect.
The movie includes footage of several real animal killings, including a pig
being gutted while still partially alive.
praised the film in The Daily Telegraph
s 'Film makers on film' interview series, on 19 October, 2002. Leigh pays tribute to the film’s humanity, realism, and vast scale. He called the film “extraordinary on a number of levels”, before concluding “this guy's [Olmi] a genius, and that's all there is to it”. Leigh has described Olmi's epic of peasant life in Lombardy
as 'the ultimate location film' : " Directly, objectively, yet compassionately, it puts on the screen the great, hard, real adventure of living and surviving from day to day, and from year to year, the experience of ordinary people everywhere...the camera is always in exactly the right place...but the big question, arising out of these truthful and utterly convincing performances achieved by non-actors, always remains: how does he really do it?" When Al Pacino
was asked by the AFI
what his favourite movie was, he admitted that he "always liked The Tree Of Wooden Clogs."
Ermanno Olmi
Ermanno Olmi is a renowned Italian film director.-Biography:Olmi was born in Bergamo, Lombardy. He is married to Loredana Detto, who played Antonietta Masetti in Il Posto....
. The film concerns Lombard
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
peasant life in a cascina
Cascina a corte
The Italian phrase cascina a corte or, equivalently, cascina lombarda or just cascina refers to a type of rural building traditional of the Po Valley, especially of Lombardy and of some areas of Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna. Cascine are reported in the Po Valley at least since the 16th century, but...
(farmhouse) of the late 19th century
19th century
The 19th century was a period in history marked by the collapse of the Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Holy Roman and Mughal empires...
. It has some similarities with the earlier Italian neorealist
Italian neorealism
Italian neorealism is a style of film characterized by stories set amongst the poor and working class, filmed on location, frequently using nonprofessional actors...
movement, in that it focuses on the lives of the poor, and the parts were played by real farmers and locals, rather than professional actors. It won fourteen awards including the Palme d'or
Palme d'Or
The Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
at Cannes
1978 Cannes Film Festival
The 31st Cannes Film Festival was held on May 16-30. This festival saw the introduction of a new non-competitive section, 'Un Certain Regard', which replaces 'Les Yeux Fertiles' , 'L'Air du temps' and 'Le Passé composé'.- Jury :*Alan J...
and the César Award for Best Foreign Film
César Award for Best Foreign Film
This is the list of winners and nominees of the César Award for Best Foreign Film .-1970s:-1980s:-1990s:-2000s:-2010s:...
. The original version of the movie is spoken in Bergamasque
Bergamasque
The Bergamasque is the western variant of the Eastern Lombard group of the Lombard language. It is mainly spoken in the province of Bergamo and in the area around Crema, in central Lombardy....
, an Eastern Lombard dialect.
The movie includes footage of several real animal killings, including a pig
Pig
A pig is any of the animals in the genus Sus, within the Suidae family of even-toed ungulates. Pigs include the domestic pig, its ancestor the wild boar, and several other wild relatives...
being gutted while still partially alive.
Cast
- Luigi Ornaghi - Batistì
- Francesca Moriggi - Batistina
- Omar Brignoli - Minec
- Antonio Ferrari - Tuni
- Teresa Brescianini - Widow Runk
- Giuseppe Brignoli - Anselmo
- Carlo Rota - Peppino
- Pasqualina Brolis - Teresina
- Massimo Fratus - Pierino
- Francesca Villa - Annetta
- Maria Grazia Caroli - Bettina
- Battista Trevaini - Il Finard
- Giuseppina Langalelli - La Moglie Finarda
- Lorenzo Pedroni - Il nonno Finard
- Felice Cervi - Uslì
Critical acclaim
British film-maker Mike LeighMike Leigh
Michael "Mike" Leigh, OBE is a British writer and director of film and theatre. He studied theatre at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, and studied further at the Camberwell School of Art and the Central School of Art and Design. He began as a theatre director and playwright in the mid 1960s...
praised the film in The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
s 'Film makers on film' interview series, on 19 October, 2002. Leigh pays tribute to the film’s humanity, realism, and vast scale. He called the film “extraordinary on a number of levels”, before concluding “this guy's [Olmi] a genius, and that's all there is to it”. Leigh has described Olmi's epic of peasant life in Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
as 'the ultimate location film' : " Directly, objectively, yet compassionately, it puts on the screen the great, hard, real adventure of living and surviving from day to day, and from year to year, the experience of ordinary people everywhere...the camera is always in exactly the right place...but the big question, arising out of these truthful and utterly convincing performances achieved by non-actors, always remains: how does he really do it?" When Al Pacino
Al Pacino
Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
was asked by the AFI
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute is an independent non-profit organization created by the National Endowment for the Arts, which was established in 1967 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act...
what his favourite movie was, he admitted that he "always liked The Tree Of Wooden Clogs."