Open City

Released Feb 25, 1946

1h 45m

Drama

List

100%

Tomatometer

46 Reviews

92%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

Rome, 1944. Giorgio Manfredi, one of the leaders of the Resistance is tracked down by the Nazis. He goes to his friend Francesco's, and asks Pina, Francesco's fiance, for help. Pina must warn a priest, Don Pietro Pellegrini, that Giorgio needs to leave the town as soon as possible.

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Critics Consensus

Open City fills in the familiar contours of its storyline with three-dimensional characters and a narrative depth that add up to a towering -- and still powerfully resonant -- cinematic achievement.

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Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

One of the toughest, bleakest, war films ever made, this Roberto Rossellini classic simply couldn't be any other way.

Rated: 5/5

Jan 28, 2022

Full Review

Kate Muir

Times (UK)

The neo-realist film's genius lies in a slow undertow, inexorably dragging the audience from laughter to tears.

Jan 2, 2018

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Richard Brody

New Yorker

Handheld cameras tremble with the urgency of open wounds and violent emotion in Roberto Rossellini's 1945 drama of the Italian resistance to the capital's occupation by Nazi Germany.

Oct 26, 2016

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

One emotionally powerful scene follows another.

Rated: 4/4

Nov 3, 2021

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Asher Luberto

L.A. Weekly

Rossellini forever changed the way we look at movies. By shooting just six months after World War II, he was able to film Italy's recovery through actual bombed out buildings, using a mix of professional and non-professional actors for authentic results.

Apr 5, 2020

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Michael J. Casey

Boulder Weekly

Changing the face of cinema.

Aug 19, 2019

Full Review

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TWMax65

It was very impressive that this movie was made and came out just a year after the war ended. It was well-written and acted, specifically by the priest in the movie who I think had the best lines and moments, up until the very end. At first getting through it was somewhat boring with the fugitive hiding from the Nazis, however once they were captured and once he was tortured you get very invested. There is a good scene with German officers having a conversation in another room that I felt was very significant. Overall I found this to be very impressive by the ending and the totalitarianism and dreadful rule under the Nazis was depicted pretty well.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/28/23

Full Review

david l

Rome, Open City transcends its somewhat standard storyline due to its emotionally charged approach and excellent acting performances across the board with Anna Magnani being the standout. This Italian neorealist picture has too many plot points and characters, but at least their development is pretty strong and the directing from Rossellini was excellent.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A poetic style with substance but it runs very slow. The precepts of the neorealist cinema is very well developed. 4/10

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

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dave s

Not only is Roberto Rossellini's Rome, Open City an influential cornerstone of the Italian neorealism movement, it's also a great movie. Set in Nazi occupied Rome of 1944, members of the Resistance desperately try to escape the German army, knowing that capture will lead to certain torture and probable death. It's a compelling story from the get-go, thanks primarily to remarkably well-developed characters, characters filled with courage, principles and humanity. While the first part of the film is filled with intrigue and suspense, the second half is something else altogether and is unforgettable in its impact. Rome, Open City is a film that is worthy of the praise bestowed upon it.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Builds to a dramatic and emotional closing half hour. At time a little confusing what's going on, partly as subtitles were worse than I've seen before, missing huge chunks. Worth watching for the ending scenes as much as anything.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/28/23

Full Review

Tony S

Monumental achievement of neo-realism. Hardly a tired parable of 'Fascism = Bad' but more of a examination of what makes one human and what it takes to lose all sense of humanity. Not even by how you treat other people but how you perceive and treat yourself as a person. As Don Pietro said: "It isn't hard to die well, It is hard to live well."

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

08/28/21

Full Review

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Roberto Rossellini

Director

Aldo Fabrizi

Don Pietro Pellegrini

Anna Magnani

Pina

Marcello Pagliero

Luigi Ferrari

Maria Michi

Marina Mari

Harry Feist

Major Bergmann

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Synopsis

Rome, 1944. Giorgio Manfredi, one of the leaders of the Resistance is tracked down by the Nazis. He goes to his friend Francesco's, and asks Pina, Francesco's fiance, for help. Pina must warn a priest, Don Pietro Pellegrini, that Giorgio needs to leave the town as soon as possible.

Director: Roberto Rossellini
Screenwriter: Sergio Amidei, Alberto Consiglio, Sergio Amidei, Federico Fellini, Roberto Rossellini
Distributor: Video Yesteryear, Reel Media International [us], Image Entertainment Inc., Kino Video, Criterion Collection
Production Co: Excelsa Film
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Italian
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 25, 1946, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 6, 2015
Runtime: 1h 45m
Sound Mix: Mono
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.37:1)

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