The Late Great Monica Vitti

Monica Vitti, known as the Queen of Italian Cinema, died today, February 2 2022, at the age of 90. The cause was complications from Alzheimer's disease.

Monica Vitti was born Maria Luisa Ceciarelli in Rome on November 3 1931. As a teenager she appeared in amateur theatrical productions. She attended the National Academy of Dramatic Arts in Rome, from which she graduated in 1953. She toured Germany with an Italian acting troupe and her first appearance on stage in Rome was in a production of La Mandragola.

Monica Vitti made her film debut in an uncredited role in Ridere! Ridere! Ridere! (1954). In the late Fifties she appeared in the films Una pelliccia di visone (1956) and Le dritte (1958). Her big break came with  Michelangelo Antonioni's  L'avventura (1960), in which played the somewhat detached protagonist searching for one of her friends. She made her television debut in the mini-series L'alfiere (1956). In the late Fifties she appeared on television in the TV movie Questi ragazzi, the TV movie Il tunnel, the TV series Mont-Oriol, and the TV movie Il borghese gentiluomo.

In the Sixties Monica Vitti appeared in the movies La notte (1961), Les quatre vérités (1962), Dragées au poivre (1963), Château en Suède (1963), Alta infedeltà (1964), Il deserto rosso (1964), Il disco volante (1964), Le bambole (1965), Modesty Blaise (1966), Le fate (1966), Fai in fretta ad uccidermi... ho freddo! (1967), Ti ho sposato per allegria (1967), Ti ho sposato per allegria (1967), La ragazza con la pistola (1968), La femme écarlate (1969), Amore mio aiutami (1969), Dramma della gelosia (tutti i particolari in cronaca) (1970), Ninì Tirabusciò, la donna che inventò la mossa (1970), Le coppie (1970), and La pacifista - Smetti di piovere (1970). On television she appeared in the TV movie Le notti bianche  and the TV series Les fables de La Fontaine.

In the Seventies she appeared in the movies La supertestimone (1971), Noi donne siamo fatte così (1971), Gli ordini sono ordini (1972), La Tosca (1973), Teresa la ladra (1973), Polvere di stelle (1973), Le fantôme de la liberté (1974), A mezzanotte va la ronda del piacere (1975), Qui comincia l'avventura (1975), L'anatra all'arancia (1975), Mimì Bluette... fiore del mio giardino (1976), Basta che non si sappia in giro!.. (1976), L'altra metà del cielo (1977), La raison d'état (1978), Per vivere meglio, divertitevi con noi (1978), Amori miei (1978), Letti selvaggi (1979), An Almost Perfect Affair (1979), Il mistero di Oberwald (1980), and Non ti conosco più amore (1980). On television she appeared in the TV movie Il cilindro.

In the Eighties Monica Vitti appeared in the movies Camera d'albergo (1981), Il tango della gelosia (1981), Io so che tu sai che io so (1982), Scusa se è poco (1982), Flirt (1983), Francesca è mia (1986), and Scandalo segreto (1990). She appeared in the TV movie La fuggiDiva. Monica Vitti's last appearance was in the TV movie Ma tu mi vuoi bene?  in 1992.

Monica Vitti was simply an incredible actress. She could convey the feelings of her characters without saying a thing. One did not need to know Italian or read subtitles to often know how her characters felt. What is more, she gave some amazing performances in her career. She was the distant protagonist in  L'avventura. She played the vivacious Valentina in La Notte. In Il  deserto rosso, she played Giuliana, the wife of an industrial manager trapped by the alienation she feels in her world. It was for the power of her performances that Monica Vitti was dubbed the Queen of Italian Cinema. There are very few who could ever match her.