MovieChat Forums > Fratello sole, sorella luna (1972) Discussion > Italian FRATELLO SOLE... vs English BROT...

Italian FRATELLO SOLE... vs English BROTHER SUN...

posted 19 years ago by marcin_kukuczka
6 replies | jump to latest

I have looked for a chance to see the Italian version of this film for a long time. At last, I saw it on the Italian TV, Rete4 on April, the 8th, 2005. From the moment I first saw this version, I do admit that I noticed a lot of differences between the two versions in many aspects.

First, the Italian version is different concerning music and songs. There are fewer songs by Riz Ortolani than Donovan, and they do not appear to be so much influenced by the "flower power era." For instance, the song "On this Lovely Day" is replaced by "Fratello sole sorella luna", the title song (the sets of nature are radically different as well as some footage, e.g. Francis sits on a tree or walks near the castle in the Italian version). There is also no trace in the Italian version of "On that long ago Lazy Day" sung by Donovan just at the beginning of the English movie.

Second, a lot of moments are different, some appear only in the Italian version and some in the English version. The Italian version happens chronologically, there are no flashbacks: it starts with the moment showing Francesco and his companions riding horses in the streets and the market square of Assisi (a bit longer). Then, it moves to a new scene when they come to Francis' house in the middle of the night and wake up Francis' parents and servants, who are scared that Perugians came to rob them. This scene is followed by longer moments of Francesco preparing for war. After about 15 minutes of the movie, he comes back ill from war. During his illness, there are no flashbacks, which makes the moments less dramatic. Then, the sequence is quite the same; however, some scenes are in a different order. Later on, there are 2 or 3 new scenes (e.g. Francis giving alms to the beggers in front of the parish church of Assisi) and A LOT OF the scenes are shot from different ankles. The scene at the pope contains no differences. The final song "Fratello sole sorella luna" is sung by a choir and the melody is sometimes a bit different than "Brother sun sister moon".

I liked both versions, but I think that the English version, as it is shorter, is more interesting and more lively. The flashbacks in the first half of the movie make it more dramatic. There is also more music in the background, which the Italian version sometimes lacks.

I have one question: when was the film shot? It seems that they shortened it between 1972 (Italian premiere) and 1973 (English premiere).

Marcin from Cieszyn, Poland

[–] angelofvic 18 years ago

I didn't know there was an Italian version. How was this made? Did they over-dub the actors' voices in Italian?

Or was it an entirely different film, made with Italian actors?

[–] marcin_kukuczka 18 years ago

Good questions! The film was filmed once with the same cast. However, the movie was released in Italy one year earlier and it was longer in its version (something like the director's version now). The actors were dubbed in Italian and the film was not that prepared for international viewers. Then before the English premiere in 1973, they shortened something, skipped some scenes and changed the chronology in the beginning. It was in that period that Donovan recorded his songs because there was no need to credit him in the Italian version.

Thanks for your interest,
Marcin

[–] angelofvic 15 years ago

Considering the film debuted March 3, 1972 and won the 1972 Donatello Award, it had to have been filmed 1971 or before.

Here is what I have found:

"The film was shot in 1970 and by the time of its premiere in 1972 its simple flower power view was already dated, as Zefferelli's memoirs acknowledge."

http://www.epinions.com/review/mvie_mu-1003132/mvie-review-5C5D-1595AC F2-39BD81A7-prod6

. . . . . . . .

[–] edbassford1 10 years ago

It was definitely shot during the summer of 1971. I was living in Montalcino at the time and they recreated the facade of Assisi cathedral there, in plaster of paris, using the traffic free square in the middle of Montalcino's castle.

[–] angelofvic 10 years ago

Were you by chance also living there in 1970? Because that's when the epinion forum post quoting Zeff's memoirs says it was filmed. Or, it's possible that the cathedral was one of the "new scenes" that was added after the original 1970 filming for a later release (see a few posts above).

I don't have Zeff's memoirs to double-check this (the first filming dates) but perhaps someone on this thread does.

.

[–] Speeed (170) 8 months ago

Thank you for this very good synopsis of the difference between the two and your overall opinion. It's quite interesting and quite clear the way you've written it.