Journey through Emilia (red and black) in the footsteps of Bertolucci's 'Novecento

There is, of course, so much of the set of Novecento: from Angelo Novi's marvellous black and white photos to the original script, to ABCinema, the documentary in which Giuseppe Bertolucci, Bernardo's brother and co-writer, turned the behind-the-scenes of the work into a reflection on the Seventh Art. And there is also so much of the historical and social context in which Novecento was made: Mario Schifano's Pop-Maoist Cohort and Franco Angeli's Ross Partisan Cemetery, the enthusiastic review with which Rolling Stone greeted the American release, the contemporary posters of films high and low in our cinematography, and the images of the legendary football match between the cast of Novecento and that of the 'twin' film Salò o le 120 giornate di Sodoma (1975) by Pier Paolo Pasolini, released a few weeks after the tragic death of the author, and great friend of the Bertolucci family. For the record: the cast of Novecento won, but Bernando 'cheated' by hiring some promise from the Parma youth team. Including a certain Carletto Ancelotti.

Il colpo d’occhio sul cortile della Corte degli Angeli, principale set di «Novecento»

The great thing about the set of the Novecento is that it is still 'watchable'. Starting with the farm where the class struggle between the bourgeois Berlinghieri and the proletarian Dalcò takes place. It is located in Roncole di Busseto (Parma), just a few kilometres from the birthplace of Giuseppe Verdi, and was built in the early 19th century by Prince Giovanni Vidoni de' Soresina to a design by Luigi Voghera, an architect from Cremona. A farm that was created to produce the noblest food in the area, Parmigiano Reggiano, according to an innovative vision: the wellbeing of humans and animals at the centre of the production process. Today, two-thirds of that structure has been taken over by Alessandro Lusardi and his wife Milly Freddi and transformed into the Corte degli Angeli agriturismo.

L’interno del podere di «Novecento» come appare in una foto dal set di Angelo Novi (courtesy Fondazione Bernardo Bertolucci)

The guided tour is a blow to the heart for all fans of the film: in the monumental barn there is still the hook from which Alfredo/Lancaster hangs himself. Here, in order to distinguish the turn-of-the-century settings from those of 1945, Bertolucci insisted on filming cows of different breeds, consistent with Italy's agro-industrial history. A few metres away was the immense track on which the Maestro moved the dolly. And you could walk through the gate that welcomed the procession of red flags in the long march of socialists. The immense court hosted the trial of the Maestro/De Niro and the speech of Olmo/Depardieu breaking down the fourth wall. From the stairs where Depardieu meets Sandrelli for the first time, there is access to the attic where little Olmo bred silkworms. There is the Dalcò family's dining room and it is possible to stay in their rooms. In short: everything here speaks of the Novecento. Starting with Lusardi, who grew up on the farm: his family was working on the farm when Bertolucci's cast arrived. And he, a child of fifty, was chosen by the Maestro to play the part of the 'spidocchiato'.

Le stalle della Corte degli Angeli, set di alcune delle sequenze più celebri di «Novecento»

But the set of Novecento does not stop at the court of Roncole di Busseto. A stroll through the historic centre of Guastalla (Reggio Emilia), for example, reveals scenes of the town's setting, between Anita's Casa del Popolo and the raids of the early fascists. If you move from Emilia to Lombardy, then you can find more details of the Berlinghieri house. At the Badia farmstead in Voltido (Cremona) the Dalcò will be partying, while there is little to celebrate at the Santuario della Beata Vergine Maria delle Grazie in Curtatone (Mantua), where Attila/Sutherland collects funds from the businesses of the Bassa (the lowlands) that will be used to set up the local branch of the National Fascist Party, to stifle any proletarian claims. Complete with ecclesiastical blessing.

Le riprese di «Novecento» in piazza a Guastalla (courtesy Fondazione Bernardo Bertolucci)

Beyond the film's locations, it is the view of the countryside of the Bassa that gives us back the atmosphere of the Novecento: sheaves of hay piled up in the fields, ditches populated by frogs, architecture a few centuries old built for work but nevertheless according to the principle of beauty. Everything makes up the marvellous fresco that Bertolucci wanted as a backdrop for his very particular epos of class struggle. Because, as Oliver Stone will say, "Bernardo loved Jean-Luc Godard. But he was crazy about Walk with the Wind'.