12 dicembre
Directed byGiovanni Bonfanti
Pier Paolo Pasolini (uncredited)
Produced byAlberto Grimaldi (uncredited)
Giovanni Bonfanti
CinematographySebastiano Celeste

Dimitri Nicolau
Giuseppe Pinori
Enzo Tosi

Roberto Lombardi
Edited byGiovanni Bonfanti

Lamberto Mancini
Maurizio Ponzi

Pier Paolo Pasolini (uncredited)
Music byPino Masi
Production
companies
Lotta Continua
European Associated Productions
Distributed byCircolo Ottobre (Italy)
Release date
1972
Running time
43 min (shortened version)
104 min (full version)
CountryItaly
LanguageItalian

12 dicembre, also known as Dodici dicembre (eng. December 12th), is a 1972 documentary film directed by Giovanni Bonfanti and Pier Paolo Pasolini (uncredited).[1][2]

It is an independent documentary about the Piazza Fontana massacre and the death of anarchist Giuseppe Pinelli.[1]

Content

The documentary, through various interviews conducted throughout Italy, analyzes some episodes concerning the political climate of the country. Among those interviewed, in addition to the many workers and militants of Lotta Continua, there are also deputy Achille Stuani, member of the Italian Communist Party; Licia Pinelli, Giuseppe's widow, and several lawyers including those of Pietro Valpreda.[3]

Production

Development

The film was made by Pier Paolo Pasolini on the proposal and with the collaboration of some militants of Lotta Continua, a formation of the communist-oriented far-left.[4] During the making of the film, there were creative differences between the well-known director and the group's management.[4] Pasolini wanted to make a denunciation film enhancing the anthropological and social aspect of the country during that period.[4][5] The disagreements continued throughout the editing phase.[4]

Pasolini in 1975

Why did I make this film together with a group of young comrades from Lotta Continua? There is certainly a reason, but, to be honest, I can't say. I criticized at the time, violently and perhaps inappropriately, the political action of young people: many of my criticisms have unfortunately turned out to be right, and I do not abjure them. However, it seems to me that the real revolutionary tension is experienced today by far-left minorities. The global and almost intolerant criticism that these express against the Italian state and capitalist society finds me in complete agreement in substance, even if not often in form. Therefore, as long as I am capable, and have the strength, it is them that I side with...

— Pier Paolo Pasolini in The Cinema of Poetry[6]

In an interview with Panorama on 31 December 1970, Pasolini mentioned Attacco al Power (Attack on Power) and 1969 among the film's provisional titles.[3]

Filming

Filming began on December 12, 1970 and concluded in June of the following year.[4] It took place in the quarries of Carrara, in Milan, Viareggio, Naples and at the Musocco cemetery, Pinelli's burial place.[4] The film was financed by Alberto Grimaldi.[7]

Credits

To avoid any potential problems with the law, Pasolini and Grimaldi decided not to have their names appear in the film's credits.[3]

Editing

During filming, 80,000m of film was used,[8] but only 4000m were edited; the remainder are considered lost.[3] The montage was carried out entirely by Pasolini.[3]

Soundtrack

The music in the film was composed by Pino Masi, a member of Lotta Continua at the time.[9]

Distribution

In Italy the film was first distributed by Circolo Ottobre on 20 May 1972.[1] The documentary was also presented in the same year at the Berlin Film Festival[4] and on October 31, 2014 at the Vienna International Film Festival[10]

The shortened version of the film is available on YouTube.[11]

Home video edition

The shortened version was released in 1995 on VHS and in 2011 on DVD.[4]

Full version

In 2013, the full version of the film, considered lost, was found in a film archive in Hamburg.[12] This version, after being restored by the German publishing house Laika Verlag and the Fondazione Cineteca di Bologna,[5] was screened in Bologna in 2015 during the Cinema Ritrovato event.[13]

Reception

Critique

Il Morandini gives the film 3 stars out of 5.[4] The documentary was reviewed by Alberto Moravia on 30 April 1972 in L'Espresso.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "12 Dicembre". Cinematografo.
  2. ↑ "12 dicembre". Aamod.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "12 DICEMBRE: PASOLINI RITROVATO". FilmIdee.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 MYmovies.it. "12 Dicembre". MYmovies.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  5. 1 2 "Pasolini in lotta:". Cinefilia Ritrovata (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  6. ↑ "Lotta continua12 dicembre (1970)". CittaPasolini. Archived from the original on 24 November 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  7. ↑ "Pasolini in lotta:". Cinefilia Ritrovata (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  8. ↑ "12 dicembre, il film ritrovato - di Pier Paolo Pasolini e Lotta Continua". LaSchighera.
  9. ↑ "Pasolini Documentari 12 dicembre Lotta continua Città Pasolini Archivi". Pier Paolo Pasolini (in Italian). Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  10. ↑ "12 DICEMBRE".
  11. ↑ 12 DICEMBRE di P. P. Pasolini // Film integrale (1971-'72) on YouTube
  12. ↑ ""12 Dicembre" di Pasolini all'Arsenale il 29 Febbraio".
  13. ↑ "12 DICEMBRE (1972), di Pier Paolo Pasolini e Giovanni Bonfanti". CineLapsus.com (in Italian). 2015-06-30. Retrieved 2023-11-08.

12 dicembre at IMDb

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