| Property Is No Longer a Theft | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Elio Petri |
| Screenplay by |
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| Story by |
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| Produced by | Claudio Mancini |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Luigi Kuveiller |
| Edited by | Ruggero Mastroianni |
| Music by | Ennio Morricone |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Titanus |
Release date |
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Running time | 125 minutes |
| Countries |
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| Language | Italian |
Property Is No Longer a Theft (Italian: La proprietà non è più un furto) is a 1973 Italian-French comedy drama film directed by Elio Petri.[1][2][3]
The film is considered the conclusion to Petri's so-called Trilogy of Neuroses, showing the neurosis of money, along with Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion (neurosis of power), and The Working Class Goes to Heaven (neurosis of work).[4]
Plot
[edit]Total, a young bank cashier, is allergic to money and feels only contempt for his customers who, in his eyes built their wealth on criminal or corrupt activities. After witnessing an armed robbery in his bank, he becomes a Marxist, resigns from his job and turns to theft for ideological reasons. He stalks a former client, a butcher from Rome who for him represents the evils of capitalism, and robs him of his valuables: first the butcher's knife and hat, then his jewellery, money, car and even his mistress Anita. When the butcher identifies his pursuer, he tries to pay Total off, but the latter resists and teams up with professional thief Albertone instead. Total continues on his path, the expoliation of other people's property, until he is stopped by the butcher who strangles him to death in an elevator.
Cast
[edit]- Ugo Tognazzi as the butcher
- Flavio Bucci as Total
- Daria Nicolodi as Anita
- Salvo Randone as Total's father
- Mario Scaccia as Albertone
- Julien Guiomar as bank director
- Jacques Herlin as bank employee
- Gigi Proietti as Paco
- Orazio Orlando as Pirelli
- Ettore Garofolo as Bocio
- Gino Milli as Zaganè
- Cecilia Polizzi as Mafalda
- Luigi Antonio Guerra
- Ada Pometti
Release
[edit]Property Is No Longer a Theft was screened in competition at the 23rd Berlin International Film Festival.[5] The film was censored by authorities in Italy for obscenity and offense to modesty, however despite this, it received a good response from the public.[6]
Reception
[edit]The film was harshly reviewed by left wing critics at the time, and the film was considered the weakest of the trilogy.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Curti, Roberto (2021). Elio Petri: Investigation of a Filmmaker. McFarland. ISBN 9781476680347.
- ^ "La proprietà non è più un furto". Cinematografo.it (in Italian). Retrieved 26 January 2024.
- ^ Lang, Simon (2023). Ästhetik und Politik im Werk des italienischen Filmregisseurs Elio Petri. edition text + kritik. ISBN 9783967078770.
- ^ Diazzi, Alessandra (2019). The Years of Alienation in Italy: Factory and Asylum Between the Economic Miracle and the Years of Lead. Cham: Springer International Publishing AG. ISBN 9783030151492.
- ^ "Property Is No Longer a Theft". Film Affinity. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
- ^ Marzolla, Giuseppe (19 October 1973). "Nuovo attacco alla libertà d'espressione" (PDF). L'Unità. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
- ^ Fogliato, Fabrizio (9 October 2013). ""La proprietà non è più un furto" di Elio Petri". Rapporto Confidenziale (in Italian). Retrieved 8 April 2025.