Story of a Woman

1970 film by Leonardo Bercovici
  • February 13, 1970 (1970-02-13)
Running time
90 minutesCountriesItaly
United StatesLanguagesEnglish
SwedishBudget$1.4 million[1]

Story of a Woman is a 1970 Italian-American drama romance film written, produced and directed by Leonardo Bercovici and starring Bibi Andersson, Robert Stack and James Farentino.[2]

Plot

A Swedish girl studying to be a concert pianist in Rome falls in love with a medical student. When she discovers the student is married to an older woman, she heads home to Sweden and marries an American diplomat. The diplomat is assigned to Rome.

Cast

  • Bibi Andersson as Karin Uilman
  • Robert Stack as David Frasier
  • James Farentino as Bruno Cardini
  • Annie Girardot as Liliana
  • Didi Perego as Bruno's Girl Friend
  • Mario Nascimbene as Prof Ferrara
  • Francesco Mulè as Manzetti (as Francesco Mulé)
  • Frank Sundström as Mr. Ullman
  • Toivo Pawlo as Rushenov
  • Beppe Wolgers as Fahlen
  • Birgitta Valberg as Mrs. Ullman
  • Cathy Riney as Cathy
  • Erika Rosell as Sissi

Production

Universal wanted Robert Stack to sign to a long-term contract and star in the TV series The Name of the Game; as an inducement they offered him one feature film a year the first of which was Story of a Woman. He made it just before he started the series.[3]

Stack called it "a love story, in the genre of A Man and a Woman with its own kind of style. The role is a real departure for me, my first unabashedly romantic story. When I saw daily footage I saw a character I'd never seen on film before - me."[3]

James Farentino joined the cast in February 1968.[4]

Filming began in March 1968 in Stockholm.[5] It was also filmed in Rome.[6]

Composer John Williams contributed to the film's score with the song "Uno di qua, l'altra di là", which was sung by Onella Vanoni.[7]

Reception

The film's release was delayed a long time.[8] According to one report the film "played a week in Cleveland and died."[9] It screened in Los Angeles in late 1971, the Los Angeles Times calling it "well made".[10] The Motion Picture Herald also reviewed the film, noting that it was "straight out of the pages of one of the better women's magazines".[11] Variety predicted its "clichéd development will have very limited appeal."[12]

Stack later wrote "despite good reviews, the film came in over budget and didn't make a nickel."[13] Stack says that Universal tried to get out of its commitment to him to make one film a year for the next two years - they ended up paying him off.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ "All Of This 'Story' Drama Is Not On Celluloid". Daily Variety. June 7, 1968. p. 2.
  2. ^ STORY OF A WOMAN "(Storia di una Donna)" Monthly Film Bulletin; London Vol. 37, Iss. 432, (Jan 1, 1970): 36.
  3. ^ a b Browning, Norma Lee (24 November 1968). "Stack Living in Best of All Worlds". Chicago Tribune. p. e10.
  4. ^ Martin, Betty (2 February 1968). "MOVIE CALL SHEET: 'Story' Role for Farentino". Los Angeles Times. p. c14.
  5. ^ MOVIE CALL SHEET: Kamala Devi in Co-Star Role Martin, Betty. Los Angeles Times 5 Mar 1968: c11.
  6. ^ Kleiner, Dick (1968-05-26). "Actors Roam Rome in Search of a Home". The Kokomo Tribune – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Audissino, Emilio (2014-06-12). John Williams's Film Music: Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the Return of the Classical Hollywood Music Style. University of Wisconsin Pres. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-299-29733-6.
  8. ^ Hollywood's 'Skeletons' By Joseph Gelmis. The Washington Post and Times-Herald 14 Nov 1971: H7.
  9. ^ The Celluoid on the Shelves Vernon, Scott. Chicago Tribune 3 Oct 1971: g7.
  10. ^ 2 Heroines From the Shelf Thomas, Kevin. Los Angeles Times 17 Nov 1971: f20.
  11. ^ Motion Picture Herald. Quigley Publishing Company. 1970. pp. lxvii.
  12. ^ "Film Reviews". Variety. 4 Feb 1970. p. 18 – via Proquest Entertainment Industry Magazine Archive.
  13. ^ Stack, Robert; Evans, Mark (1980). Straight shooting. Macmillan. p. 268.
  14. ^ Stack p 271

External links