Luchino Visconti

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Lore & Background

Visconti's adaptation of Boito's novella involved substantial creative departures. The original work is structured as the private diary of Countess Livia, who is from Trento rather than Venice, and includes a present-day framing where she rebuffs a lawyer named Gino while reminiscing about her 1866 affair. Visconti stripped away the diary structure entirely and removed Gino from the narrative, concentrating the story exclusively on wartime events. He also introduced the character of Roberto Ussoni, Livia's nationalist cousin who organizes a rebellion against Austrian forces—a figure absent from Boito's text. The pivotal scene in which Livia diverts partisan funds to her lover, precipitating the catastrophic Battle of Custoza, is likewise Visconti's invention. The novella's protagonists first meet at a swimming bath, but Visconti relocated their encounter to an opera performance. The Austrian officer's name was changed from Remigio Ruz to Franz Mahler, a nod to Gustav Mahler, one of Visconti's favorite composers, whose music features prominently in his later film *Death in Venice* (1971).

Reader's Guide

Visconti's initial vision for the leads was nothing less than Ingrid Bergman and Marlon Brando. However, Bergman was married to Italian director Roberto Rossellini at the time, and he would not allow her to work for other directors. Brando's involvement fell through as well—producers considered Farley Granger a bigger star, and it has also been said that Brando refused the role after being informed that Bergman was not going to participate. Granger, who did not speak Italian, had his dialogue dubbed by Enrico Maria Salerno in post-production. In his autobiography, Tab Hunter claimed Visconti considered him to play Mahler, but his agent didn't tell him because he thought foreign films were a waste of time. Alida Valli ultimately secured the role of Livia, portraying an Italian countess at odds with the Austrian Empire, though she was descended from Austrian nobility and held the title Freiin von Marckenstein-Frauenberg. Visconti also offered the part to Maria Callas, who declined due to scheduling issues. The film marked Visconti's first foray into color cinematography.

Did You Know?

• The film was Visconti's first color film.
• The character Franz Mahler was named as a tribute to composer Gustav Mahler, whose music features prominently in Visconti's later film *Death in Venice* (1971).
• The opening sequence was shot on-location at La Fenice opera house; after La Fenice was destroyed by arson in 1996, stills from the film were used as references for the reconstruction.
• Franco Zeffirelli, Francesco Rosi, and Jean-Pierre Mocky worked as Visconti's assistants on the film.
• A truncated English-language version recut to 94 minutes with dialogue by Tennessee Williams and Paul Bowles was released under the title *The Wanton Countess*.

A Love Story Against Empire

The film is set in Italy around 1866, the year the Italian-Austrian war of unification would see the Veneto and most of Friuli-Venezia Giulia united to Italy after the Seven Weeks' War. In spring of 1866, a performance of *Il Trovatore* at La Fenice opera house in Venice is interrupted by a boisterous protest by Italian Nationalists against the occupying Austrian troops. Livia Serpieri, an Italian countess unhappily married to a stuffy older aristocrat, witnesses this and tries to conceal that her cousin Marchese Roberto Ussoni has organized the protest. During the commotion, she meets dashing Austrian Lieutenant Franz Mahler and is instantly smitten. The two begin a secret love affair. Although Franz is obviously using Livia for her money and social status, Livia throws herself into an affair of complete sexual abandon, giving away her money and not caring what society thinks. But soon, Franz begins failing to show up for their trysts and Livia becomes consumed by jealousy and paranoia. The war forces the lovers apart, with Livia's husband taking her to their villa in the country. Late one night, Franz arrives and asks for more money to bribe army doctors into keeping him off the battlefield; Livia complies, giving him all the money she was holding for Roberto, who intended to supply it to partisans fighting the Austrians. Livia's betrayal leads to tragic consequences, as the Austrians overwhelm the under-equipped Italians at the Battle of Custoza (1866). Later, Livia finds Franz in Verona with a young prostitute; he mocks her, and she, acting out of spite, hands his letter to an Austrian general, leading to Franz's execution by firing squad. Livia, now insane, runs off into the night crying out her lover's name.

Reimagining Boito's Novella

Boito's novella is presented as though it is the private diary of Countess Livia (who is not from Venice, as she is in the film, but from Trento). Sixteen years after the Third Italian War of Independence, she tells of being courted by a lawyer, Gino, whom she constantly rebuffs, and then reminisces about an affair she had in Venice in 1866, with the story switching back and forth between present and past. In adapting the novella, Visconti chose not to incorporate the diary aspect and deleted the character of Gino entirely to focus solely on events during the War. The film has a greater focus on the War than the novella, and the character of Roberto Ussoni, Livia's nationalist cousin who leads a rebellion against the Austrians, is original to the film. The episode in which Livia gives the money meant for the Italian partisans to her lover, leading to a dramatic massacre, is also not in Boito's story. Visconti strayed so far from the original source material that, at one point, he thought of renaming the film *Custoza*, after the big battle depicted late in the film, but he was unable to for legal reasons. The character of Remigio Ruz in the novella was renamed Franz Mahler for the film, as a tribute to Gustav Mahler. Another musical aspect added is the opening, which takes place during an opera (in Boito's novella, the protagonists first meet at a swimming bath).

The Casting That Almost Was

Originally, Visconti had hoped to cast Ingrid Bergman and Marlon Brando in the lead roles. However, at the time, Bergman was married to Italian director Roberto Rossellini, who would not allow her to work for other directors, and Brando was rejected by the producers, who considered Granger to be a bigger star. It has also been said that Brando refused the role after being informed that Bergman was not going to participate in the film. Because Granger did not speak Italian, his dialogue was dubbed by Enrico Maria Salerno in post-production. In his autobiography, Tab Hunter claimed Visconti considered him to play Mahler, but his agent didn't tell him because he thought foreign films were a waste of time. Ironically, while Alida Valli portrays an Italian countess at odds with the Austrian Empire, she was descended from Austrian nobility and held the title Freiin von Marckenstein-Frauenberg. Visconti also offered the part to Maria Callas, who declined due to scheduling issues.

A Title of Feeling and a Place in National Memory

The word *senso* [ˈsɛn.so] is Italian for 'sense,' 'feeling,' or 'lust.' The title refers to the delight Livia experiences while reflecting on her affair with a handsome lieutenant, in spite of her political convictions. In 2008, the film was included on the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage's 100 Italian films to be saved, a list of 100 films that 'have changed the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978.'