How a 1959 comedy dismantled the myth of the heroic Italian soldier
In short: Mario Monicelli’s The Great War transformed Italian cinema by replacing patriotic propaganda with the gritty, ironic reality of trench life. Starring Alberto Sordi and Vittorio Gassman as two reluctant soldiers, the film turned the cowardice of ordinary men into a poignant, anti-rhetorical exploration of survival, friendship, and national identity.
Released in 1959, The Great War (La grande guerra) broke from the established tradition of portraying Italian soldiers as willing, courageous martyrs. By stripping away the romanticized historiography fostered by Fascist-era propaganda, Monicelli offered a neorealist perspective on the First World War. The film follows two mismatched army buddies—Oreste, a Roman, and Giovanni, a Milanese—who are united only by their desperate desire to avoid danger and survive the conflict. Their journey through training and the disastrous defeat at Caporetto serves as a vehicle to expose the absurdity of the war and the incompetence of the military leadership.
The film’s power lies in its fusion of comedy and tragedy. While the characters are initially defined by their selfishness and fear, their final act of defiance against an Austrian officer transforms their cowardice into a profound, albeit accidental, heroism. This shift was a deliberate attempt to humanize the war experience, moving away from the 'oratory of ardour' that had long dominated Italian cinema. The screenplay, which drew inspiration from Guy de Maupassant’s 'Two friends' and books by Emilio Lussu and Piero Jahier, was bolstered by the expertise of Carlo Salsa, a veteran who had actually fought in the regions depicted on screen.
Beyond its narrative success, the film was a landmark in Italian cultural history. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1959 and was later recognized by the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage as one of the 100 films that shaped the country's collective memory. By forcing soldiers from diverse regional backgrounds to live side-by-side, the film also highlights how the shared misery of the trenches helped forge a national spirit that had previously been nearly non-existent. It remains a masterclass in using irony to critique the past, proving that the most enduring stories of war are often those that focus on the simple, human love for life.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: The Great War (1959 film)
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