A Difficult Life

A Difficult Life (Italian: Una vita difficile) is a Commedia all'italiana or Italian-style comedy film directed by Dino Risi in 1961. 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." Plot The film tells the story of Italian politics from 1944 to 1960, from the poverty of World War II to the end of fascism and the birth of the Italian Republic and the rise of the Italian Communist Party. It follows the life of Silvio, who strongly believes his political activism should be rewarded but eventually realizes that the Italy he once knew has changed and he must change with it. In 1944, Roman student Silvio Magnozzi (Alberto Sordi), is a second lieutenant in the Royal Army serving near Lake Como. After the Italian surrender on September 8, 1943, the Italian king abandons his army and flees south. Silvio joins a local partisan group to continue fighting the Nazis still occupying the Italian countryside. Looking for a safe place to stay, he is sent to a hotel. He is quickly discovered by a German soldier who intends to shoot him on the spot. Elena (Lea Massari), the daughter of the hotel owner, saves his life by killing the German with an iron. She guides him to a safe place: the mill owned by her late grandparents. For three months, he and Elena live as lovers. He eventually sneaks out away without saying goodbye and joins back up with the partisans.