Cronaca nera

Not to be confused with Cronaca Vera.

Cronaca nera (Italian for Black news) is a 1947 Italian crime film directed by Giorgio Bianchi and starring María Denis, Gino Cervi and Andrea Checchi.^[1] The title refers to the section given over to crime stories in Italian newspapers.^[2]

Cronaca nera
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Directed by	Giorgio Bianchi
Written by	Sergio Amidei Giorgio Bianchi Gaspare Cataldo Cesare Zavattini
Starring	María Denis Gino Cervi Andrea Checchi
Cinematography	Domenico Scala Massimo Terzano
Edited by	Gisa Radicchi Levi
Music by	Alessandro Cicognini
Production company	Aura Film
Distributed by	Titanus Distribuzione
Release date	15 February 1947 (1947-02-15)
Running time	90 minutes
Country	Italy
Language	Italian

Plot synopsis

A mob boss (Gino Cervi) wanted by the police takes refuge at the home of his unsuspecting associate's (Andrea Checchi) honest family, aiming to regroup his gang again when the time is right. In the process, he falls in love with his associate’s sister (María Denis) and decides to go straight.^[3]

Critical reception

On the occasion of Cronaca nera's 2015 showing on Harvard's film program, the film was described as "neorealist cinema itself" and as "exemplifying the fatalism associated with noir" in "films such as Ossessione (1943)." The program also noted that "among the film’s screenwriters are Sergio Amidei and Cesare Zavattini, who between them worked on most of the postwar masterpieces by Rossellini and de Sica."^[1]

Cast

• María Denis
• Gino Cervi
• Andrea Checchi
• Giuseppe Porelli
• Luigi Almirante
• Manoel Roero
• Renato Chiantoni
• Marisa Vernati
• Giannina Chiantoni
• Jucci Kellerman
• Luigi Pavese
• Armando Guarnieri