The Assisi Underground (film)

This article is about the 1985 film. For the book on which it is based, see The Assisi Underground.

The Assisi Underground is a 1985 American-Italian historical drama film, written and directed by Alexander Ramati. It is an adaptation of his 1978 novel, The Assisi Underground: The Priest who Rescued Jews, which is based on a true-life account by Father Rufino Niccacci of events surrounding the Assisi Network, an effort to hide 300 Jews in the town of Assisi, Italy during World War II. The film stars Ben Cross, Irene Papas, Maximilian Schell, Karlheinz Hackl, and James Mason in his final performance before his death in July 1984. His final role in a feature film was The Shooting Party.

The Assisi Underground
Directed by	Alexander Ramati
Written by	Alexander Ramati
Screenplay by	Alexander Ramati
Based on	The Assisi Underground by Alexander Ramati
Produced by	Yoram Globus Menahem Golan
Starring	Ben Cross Maximilian Schell James Mason Irene Papas Karlheinz Hackl
Cinematography	Giuseppe Rotunno
Edited by	Michael J. Duthie
Music by	Dov Seltzer
Production company	Golan-Globus Productions
Release date	September 1985 (1985-09) (US)
Running time	115 min
Countries	United States, Italy
Language	English

Plot

In 1943, Franciscan priest Rufino Niccacci is asked by the bishop of Assisi Giuseppe Placido Nicolini to covertly rescue Italian Jews from the Nazis.

Cast

• Ben Cross as Rufino Niccacci
• James Mason as Monsignor Giuseppe Placido Nicolini, Bishop of Assisi
• Irene Papas as Mother Giuseppina
• Maximilian Schell as Colonel Valentin Müller
• Karlheinz Hackl as Captain von Velden
• Geoffrey Copleston as Chief of Police Bertolucci
• Riccardo Cucciolla as Luigi Brizi
• Angelo Infanti as Giorgio Kropf
• Delia Boccardo as Countess Cristina
• Paolo Malco as Paolo Josza
• Roberto Bisacco as Professor Rieti
• Edmund Purdom as Cardinal Elia Dalla Costa
• Venantino Venantini as Pietro
• Maurice Poli as Vito
• Giancarlo Prete as Col. Gay
• Alessandra Mussolini as Sister Beata
• Riccardo Salvino as Otto Maionica
• Greta Vayan as Rita Maionica
• Alfredo Pea as Gino Bartali^[1]

Critical response

The film received a poor response from critics.^[2][3]

History

In 1998, The New York Times published an article about an Assisi resident who had come there as a refugee.^[4]

On October 5, 2012, The National Catholic Register published a long two-part article pegged to the opening of a new exhibition based on 25 years of research into the city's role in saving thousands of refugees, including approximately 300 Jews.^[5][6]