Virna Lisi was one of Italy’s most captivating and versatile actresses, whose career spanned more than five decades across European and Hollywood cinema. Born Virna Pieralisi or Virna Lisa Pieralisi—depending on the source—on November 8, 1936, in the coastal town of Ancona, Italy, she was discovered as a teenager. Because of her striking classical beauty and natural screen presence—marked by luminous blue eyes and elegant features—she quickly drew attention. At 17, she played the female lead in her screen debut “…e Naopile canta!” (1953, a.k.a. “Naples Sings!”), and immediately found steady work in Italian cinema, appearing in comedies, melodramas, and the popular peplum genre.
Her looks also enabled her to promote a toothpaste brand on television with a slogan that would become popular among Italians: ‘Con quella bocca può dire ciò che vuole’ (‘With that mouth, she can say whatever she wants’).
Her early career was marked by charm and a light comedic touch, and she became a familiar face in Italian cinema, where she was often cast as a glamorous leading lady. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, she worked with notable Italian directors and actors, establishing herself as a major star in her home country. Unlike many actresses who were confined to decorative parts, she was able to show her natural screen presence, strong acting ability, and intelligence.
She played leading female lead in Sergio Corbucci’s sword-and-sandal epic “Romolo e Remo” (1961, a.k.a. “Duel of the Titans”) opposite Steve Reeves and Gordon Scott; the film brought her international attention, and she was offered the role of Tatiana Romanova in the second James Bond movie, “From Russia With Love” (1963). She turned down the offer to play a Bond girl which ended up being played by another Italian actress, Daniela Bianchi.
After she appeared opposite Alain Delon in “La tulipe noire” (1965, a.k.a. “The Black Tulip”), and Mario Monicelli’s comedy “Casanova ’70” (1965), another international hit which also received an Oscar nomination for its screenplay, she decided to try her luck in Hollywood.
She followed in the footsteps of other Italian actors of the time, when Hollywood studios were looking for the next Marilyn Monroe who had died in August 1962 at age 36. Virna Lisi was one of the several attractive actresses who could capture the public’s imagination. The New York Times first mentioned her and her upcoming Hollywood career on January 31, 1965, when they interviewed Italian director and screenwriter Mario Monicelli for his latest film, “Casanova ’70”; he was accompanied by his leading actors Marcello Mastroianni and Virna Lisi, ‘the beautiful, blonde, temporarily re-imported Italian export to Hollywood.’
“How to Murder Your Wife” (1965, trailer)
In 1965, she made her American film debut and starred with Jack Lemmon and English character actor and comedian Terry-Thomas in Richard Quine’s tongue-in-cheek romantic comedy “How to Murder Your Wife.” Lemmon played a character named Stanley Ford, a successful, commitment‑shy New York cartoonist who leads a happy-go-lucky bachelor life until, at a party, he witnesses the comely Virna Lisi bursting out of a large cake in a bikini. When he wakes up the next morning to find her in bed with him, he discovers that he married her in a drunken stupor, and their relationship goes downhill from there. Much of the film’s farce hinges on the cultural/language gap and the couple’s mismatched dynamic, with Lisi as the glamorous, and mostly non‑English‑speaking beauty who becomes Ford’s accidental wife.
“How to Murder Your Wife” was the sixth and final film Richard Quine and Jack Lemmon made together, after “My Sister Eileen” (1955), “Operation Mad Ball” (1957), “Bell, Book and Candle” (1958), “It Happened to Jane” (1959), and “The Notorious Landlady” (1962). The screenplay was written by George Axelrod, who also wrote Richard Quine’s previous lightweight comedy, “Paris When It Sizzles” (1964), starring William Holden and Audrey Hepburn.
Originally, Axelrod—who also produced the film—had envisioned Marilyn Monroe for the part that Virna Lisi ended up playing, but the actress had died in August 1962, and Axelrod was determined to remake Lisi as the new Monroe. Previously, he had already written “Bus Stop” (1956) for Monroe, as well as “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961) which Monroe turned down and the part of Holly Golightly went to Audrey Hepburn.
When Turner Classic Movies reflected on “How to Murder Your Wife” in a June 25, 2005, article, they wrote, ‘The filming of “How to Murder Your Wife” was as manic and unpredictable as Ford’s exploits in the movie. […] Far more dangerous was an incident involving his gorgeous co-star, Virna Lisi. Lemmon once walked into Lisi’s dressing room by mistake, only to find her standing stark naked in front of a full-length mirror. Lisi’s husband, who was sitting in the corner, leaped up and lunged toward Lemmon. ‘I shot out the door like a bird…I don’t know what [the husband] thought, but I wasn’t about to stick around and find out,’ Lemmon later said.’
‘Virna was a very nice girl. […] I soon discovered that she was one fine actress. It was marvelous working with her,’ Jack Lemmon said in Don Widener’s biography “Lemmon” (1975).
In a 1965 interview for The New York Sunday News, she said, ‘My husband was not very happy about my career. Like most Italians, Franco [Pesci] is a very jealous man. Thank God! After we married he tried hard to take me away from all this movie business. Eventually, he relented.’
Jack Donohue’s action-adventure film “Assault on a Queen” (1966), about a big heist of H.M.S. Queen Mary’s vault, teamed her with Frank Sinatra in his second heist movie in the 1960s—the first one being “Ocean’s Eleven” (1960) that brought an ensemble cast of five Rat Pack members together. Variety reviewed “Assault on a Queen” on June 22, 1966; the film was praised for its box office potential and wrote that ‘Sinatra and Miss Lisi are very good in roles that make few demands on their acting ability.’
At the same time, she continued to make films in Europe. She played the lead role in Pietro Germi’s “Signore & Signori” (1966, a.k.a. “The Birds, The Bees and The Italians”); the film shared the Grand Prix with Claude Lelouch’s “Un homme et une femme” at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival. In 2008, “Signore & Signori” was included on the Italian Ministry’s of Cultural Heritage’s one hundred Italian films to be saved, a list of a hundred films that ‘have changed the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978.’
Back in the U.S., she then appeared in Norman Panama’s tepid comedy “Not With My Wife, You Don’t!” (1966) as an Italian nurse during the Korean War who falls in love with two United States Air Force pilots, Tony Curtis and George C Scott. The film followed the standard storyline of the seven “road movies” popularized by Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour—most of them made in the 1940s. Variety wrote in its September 21, 1966 film review that “Not With My Wife, You Don’t!” was ‘an outstanding romantic comedy,’ and that ‘zesty scripting, fine performances, solid direction and strong production values sustain hilarity throughout. […] Miss Lisi, who could not just stand there, and get a full measure of attention to her own looks, complemented by another snazzy Edith Head wardrobe, interacts neatly with her male stars.’
In his autobiography “American Prince: A Memoir” (2008), Tony Curtis wrote, ‘Virna [Lisi] was a very good actress, and a beautiful woman, very aristocratic. I liked her a lot.’ Regarding his tendency to fall for his leading ladies, he added, ‘Virna kept me at arm’s length. She was married, I don’t know how happily, but that didn’t matter. She wasn’t going to fall in love with me, or run away with me for a weekend. Not only did I admire her for that, but in this case it made it a lot easier to get the picture made. I didn’t have to stay up until four in the morning waiting up for her. At the end of a day of shooting, I would go home, and she would do the same.’
Although these roles increased her international fame, Lisi grew dissatisfied with being typecast as a glamorous blonde. Consequently, she turned down the leading role in Roger Vadim’s “Barbarella” (1968) which went to Jane Fonda. Virna Lisi said, ‘I said that I wanted to play something, a role, a real part.’ She later added, ‘Maybe I’ve made some wrong choices in my career, but I don’t think that was one of them.’ Several roles emphasized her looks over substance, and her refusal to conform to Hollywood’s expectations demonstrated both courage and integrity. It certainly cut short her American career.
Choosing artistic fulfillment over celebrity status, Lisi returned to her native Italy, but she didn’t abandon English-language roles or American films at all. She appeared in several international co-productions—also in English—and one of them was Stanley Kramer’s “The Secret of Santa Vittoria” (1969), about an Italian wine-producing village that conceals from the Germans a million bottles of wine in an old Roman cave in the aftermath of the fall of Mussolini. Despite Lisi’s virtuoso performance of Caterina Malatesta—an educated and elegant woman unlike any other in town—both she and the film were overwhelmed by the top-billed Academy Award winners Anthony Quinn and Anna Magnani as the village’s combative mayor and his rancorous wife.
In his autobiography “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World: A Life in Hollywood” (1997), Stanley Kramer wrote, ‘When we finished shooting [“The Secret of Santa Vittoria”] in a mountaintop Italian town named Anticoli Corrado, I brought the picture back and showed it to the United Artists executives in Hollywood. After the final scene, they stood up and applauded. They thought they had a runaway hit on their hands, but as I feared, they had nothing even close. […] The final product didn’t spark the public’s imagination.’
Still—guess again—Variety wrote in its October 1, 1969, review that the film ‘comes near being a dramatic knockout, so tempered with humor and understanding that it also becomes an idyll of war and Italian peasantry. […] As an aristocrat who returns to her home as the war wanes, Virna Lisi, previously seen by American audiences mostly in more frothy roles and as a stunning blonde, turns to drama here as a dark brunet. She demonstrates convincingly she is a talented actress.’
That same year, she co-starred with William Holden in the French-Italian father-son drama “L’Arbre de Noël” (a.k.a. “The Christmas Tree”), directed by Terence Young, and set in the French countryside. In this French-language film, Holden plays a French-American millionaire, Virna Lisi—stunning as always—is his wife, and Brook Fuller portrays the ten-year-old son who is doomed to die within a matter of months after being victim of radio-active fallout from an atom explosion. “Il Morandini: Dizionario dei film 2001,” a dictionary that includes over 17,000 films released in Italy from 1913 until 2000, described “The Christmas Tree” as ‘the most tear-jerking film of the 1960s.’
Also in 1969, she played a cameo in Mel Stuart’s “If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium,” a romantic comedy filmed on location in England, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
In the British comedy “The Statue” (1971), she played the wife of David Niven. John Cleese and Graham Chapman appear in early career roles as the Niven character’s psychiatrist and a newsreader, respectively; they were two of the six founding members of the British surreal comedy group Mony Python. Unfortunately, “The Statue” is one of only five films that renowned American film critic Roger Ebert ever walked out on. Lisi said afterwards that David Niven was ‘the co-star with whom I felt most at ease.’
In Edward Dmytryk’s “Bluebeard” (1972), Richard Burton played the title role. The legendary and overly talented Welsh-born actor, noted for his mellifluous baritone voice, among others, was supported by a cast of international beauties—Virna Lisi, Raquel Welch, Karin Schubert, Nathalie Delon, Sybil Danning, Marilù Tolo and Agostina Belli—as his previous wives who have died in mysterious circumstances. ‘Richard Burton was often drunk when he arrived at the studio in the morning and always drunk when he left in the afternoon. […] But the leading ladies (except Miss Lisi) were still falling in love with him,’ Edward Dmytryk wrote in his autobiography “It’s a Hell of a Life But Not a Bad Living: A Memoir” (1978).
Her final English-language film was Henri Verneuil’s “Night Flight from Moscow” (1973, originally titled “Le serpent,” a.k.a. “The Serpent”), a Cold War spy thriller starring a very cosmopolitan cast: Yul Brynner was Russian, Henry Fonda was an American, Sir Dirk Bogarde was an Englishman, Philippe Noiret was French, and Virna Lisi was Italian.
Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, Virna Lisi worked steadily in Italian and European cinema and television. She collaborated with respected directors and appeared in a wide range of genres. Accolades were bestowed upon her for her powerful performance as Friedrich Nietzsche’s neurotic and hysterical sister in Liliana Cavani’s controversial “Al di là del bene e del male” (1977, a.k.a. “Beyond Good and Evil”), and Luigi Comencini’s “Buon Natale, Buon anno” (1989, a.k.a. “Merry Christmas… Happy New Year”)—just to name a few.
But her most successful role was yet to come, and it could hardly have been further removed from any Hollywood casting of her as a frivolous blonde. As Catherine de’ Medici in Patrice Chéreau’s costume drama and international co-production “La Reine Margot” (1994, a.k.a. “Queen Margot”), based on the 1845 novel by Alexandre Dumas, and set in Reformation France, she forces her daughter Marguerite de Valois (played by Isabelle Adjani) to marry the Protestant Henry of Navarre (Daniel Auteuil), and she schemes to bring about the notorious Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of Protestants in 1572.
The Los Angeles Times reviewed the film on December 14, 1994, and wrote, ‘Ms. Lisi, unrecognizable from her Hollywood days in ‘60s films like “How to Murder Your Wife” and “Assault on a Queen,” gives a terrific dragon-lady performance. […] Lisi has a harsh raspy voice without a shade of lilt or sensuality. Her dark rage is almost comic in its magisterial meanness but Lisi doesn’t camp it up.’
At the Cannes Film Festival, her performance earned her the Best Actress Award. She later said, ‘I heard Clint Eastwood announce my name on the stage, it was a shock. My God! This was just a small part. My son, who was sitting next to me, whispered and told me not to cry. I got up there and cried as if I were a little starlet. It was very stupid, but, then, it had taken me thirty-five years to get there.’ Her performance in “La Reine Margot” also won her a César, France’s highest film honor and the French equivalent of the Oscar, for Best Supporting Actress.
Her award-laden performance led to a resurgence in her career, as it reintroduced her to a new generation and confirmed her status as a serious dramatic actress. It became one of the most significant performances of her career.
Virna Lisi’s later films include “Va’ dove ti porta il cuore” (1996, a.k.a. “Follow Your Heart”), directed by Cristina Comencini, daughter of Luigi Comencini, with Lisi playing a grandmother who is dying of cancer. Her performance earned her a David di Donatello Award nomination for Best Actress. This industry-voted award is considered the Italian equivalent of the Academy Award in the U.S.; Virna Lisi won four—for Best Actress in “La cicala” (1980, a.k.a. “The Cricket”), for Best Supporting Actress in “Sapore di mare” (1983, a.k.a. “Time For Loving”), and two Special David Awards (1996 and 2009).
After “Va’ dove ti porta il cuore,” Virna Lisi collaborated again with Christina Comencini for “Il più bel giorno della mia vita” (2002, a.k.a. “The Best Day of My Life”), a warm and involving film about a dysfunctional Italian family, seen through the eyes of Chiara, a young girl about to receive her first communion, and who documents her family on video. Virna Lisi played the grandmother who doesn’t know how to hold the family together.
In her later years, she did a lot of television work; her final screen role was in another Christina Comencini film, “Latin Lover” (2015), a comedy-drama released posthumously, with Lisi playing the Italian widow of a fictional and internationally known film star. Lisi was already very ill from cancer during production and died shortly after; the film is dedicated to her in the end credit.
Two Italian biographies that focus on her life and career have been published so far; they are “Virna Lisi: Un’attrice per bene” (2019), written by Sergio Toffetti and Alberto La Monica, and “Virna Lisi: Diva e antidiva” (2023), authored by Bruno di Marino.
Beyond her professional life, Lisi was known for her discretion and her family life; she maintained a relatively private personal life and avoided scandal. She married Franco Pesci in 1960, and the two were married for fifty-three years, until his death in 2013. They had one son, Corrado. She was devoted to her family, and often put her career on hold to spend time with them. ‘I have always been faithful to my husband because I love him deeply. He is my life,’ she once said. ‘My son is my greatest joy. He is very intelligent and sensitive. He has inherited his father’s artistic talent.’
When she was asked if success had changed her, she replied, ‘I take these things very coolly, so I don’t believe in letting any kind of praise go to one’s head. In a career, as in life, we can be way up one day and down the next. It doesn’t pay to permit such things to affect one’s outlook.’
Virna Lisi was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2013, and she died on December 18, 2014, at her home in Rome at age 78.
In 2022, a documentary titled “Virna Lisi: La donna che rinunciò a Hollywood” (a.k.a. “Virna Lisi: The Woman Who Gave Up Hollywood”) was released. It was written and directed by Fabrizio Corallo, using documents from archives and previously unreleased interviews. Keeping in mind her slogan, ‘With that mouth she can say whatever she wants,’ Virna Lisi did always say and do what she wanted, paving her way largely with her talent, often choosing to make herself look older, uglier and to take on difficult roles.
The Fondazione Virna Lisi—Virna Lisi Foundation—was founded in memory of her work and her legacy. The website remembers her with these words, ‘Throughout her life one of her core values was altruism. She always acted with reserve and discretion, funding scholarships for children in the developing world and making herself available for every charitable initiative. Beyond her singular talent, she was above all a mother and a wife, with an extraordinary capacity to love and always putting family first. She was married for over 50 years and her greatest joy was her son and her three grandchildren. Dedication, professionalism and love for her audience were the cornerstones of her life. She passed away in 2014, surrounded by friends and family, with her last script on her bedside table.’
On November 8, 2017, The Hollywood Reporter stated that Monica Bellucci was honored in Rome with the Virna Lisi Award. She was the third recipient of the Fondazione Cinema per Roma’s Virna Lisi Award, which honors an actress who has made an impact in Italian and global cinema. When she accepted the award, she said, ‘It means a lot because Virna Lisi is an actress that I respect very much. She is an Italian international icon. For me, she represents an aspiration, for her talent, of course, her intelligence, her beauty and her elegance. So I’m really honored and moved that I’m receiving this prize.’
Virna Lisi’s Hollywood career was over after three films, but she will always be remembered as the Italian actress who abandoned a promising Hollywood career to avoid typecasting and pursue more challenging roles in Europe. And in the end, she captivated audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. Like European contemporaries such as Gina Lollobrigida, Ursula Andress, Sophia Loren, Romy Schneider, Elke Sommer, Senta Berger, Claudia Cardinale, Capucine, Elsa Martinelli, Monica Vitti, Pier Angeli, and her twin sister Marisa Pavan, she proved that she could do much more than just look beautiful on the screen.
FILMS
… E NAPOLI CANTA!, a.k.a. NAPLES SINGS! (1953) DIR Armando Grottini PROD Antonio Ferrigno SCR Rodolfo Morelli (story by Antonio Ferrigno) CAM Sergio Pesce ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Franco Langella CAST Giacomo Rondinella, Virna Lisi (Maria Mariani), Beniamino Maggio, Germana Paolieri, Tecla Scarano, Guglielmo Inglese, Carla Boni, Mario Abbate, Gabriele Vanorio
DESIDERIO ‘E SOLE (1954) DIR Giorgio Pastina PROD Fortunato Misiano SCR Giorgio Pastina, Franco Perroni (story by Giuliana Pazielli) CAM Giuseppe La Torre ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Carlo Innocenzi CAST Giacomo Rondinella, Virna Lisi (Laura Morera), Beniamino Maggio, Lionella Carell, John Kitzmiller, Dora Strebel, Giulio Calì, Enrico Glori
VIOLENZA SUL LAGO, a.k.a. VIOLENCE IN THE LAKE (1954) DIR Leonardo Cortese PROD Cesare Torri SCR Leonardo Cortese, Cesare Torri, Sabatino Cortese, Mario Monicelli, Baccio Agnoletti (story by Cesare Torri) CAM Domenica Scala ED Antonietta Zita MUS Carlo Innocenzi CAST Lia Amanda, Erno Crisa, Peter Trent, Carlo Hintermann, Virna Lisi (Laura), Patrizia Della Rovere, Giacomo Rondinella
LETTERA NAPOLETANA, a.k.a. NAPOLEON’S LETTER (1954) DIR Giorgio Pastina PROD Fortunate Misiano SCR Luigi Caquano (story by Luigi Cioffi) CAM Giuseppe La Torre ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Giuseppe La Torre CAST Giacomo Rondinella, Lianella Carell, Virna Lisi (Anna Esposito), Otello Toso, Beniamino Maggio, Natale Cirino, Ignazio Balsamo, Giulio Battiferri, Lia Orlandini, Pasquale De Filippo, Rina Franchetti, Domenico Serra
LA CORDA D’ACCACIO (1954) DIR Carlo Borghesio SCR Oreste Biancoli, Giuseppe Mangione, Giovanni Seyta CAM Vincenzo Seratrice ED Rolando Benedetti MUS CAST Brigitte Fossey, Fausto Tozzi, Xenia Valderi, Virna Lisi (Stella), Giampiero Scionmari, Olga Solbelli, Mimo Billi, Nando Bruno
PICCOLA SANTA (1954) DIR Roberto Bianchi Montero PROD Antonio Ferrigno SCR Roberto Bianchi Montero, Antonio Ferrigno, Ermanno Morena (idea by Antonio Ferrigno) CAM Guglielmo Garroni MUS Franco Langella CAST Virna Lisi (Maria), Rosario Borelli, Tina Lattanzi, Virgilio Riento, Rossana Rory, Nino Pavese, Gianna Antonini
IL CARDINALE LAMBERTINI, a.k.a. CARDINAL LAMBERTINI (1954) DIR Giorgio Pastina PROD Giuseppe Fatigati SCR Giorgio Pastina, Oreste Biancoli, Edoardo Anton (play “Il Cardinale Lambertini” [1905] by Alfredo Testoni) CAM Rodolfo Lombardi ED Renato Scandalo MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST Gino Cervi, Nadia Gray, Arnoldo Foà, Carlo Romano, Sergio Tofano, Virna Lisi (Maria di Roccasibalda), Paolo Carlini, Tino Buazzelli, Ignazio Balsamo, Agnese Dubbini, Loris Gizzi
IL VETTURALE DEL MONCENISIO, a.k.a. THE COURIER OF MONCENISIO (1954) DIR Guido Brignone PROD Alberto Manca, Georges Combret SCR Guido Brignone, Liana Ferri, Ivo Perilli (novel “Jean le Coucher” [1852] by Jean Bouchardy) CAM Romolo Garroni ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Carlo Innocenzi CAST Roldano Lupi, Elisa Cegani, Virna Lisi (Jeanne Thibaud), Arnoldo Foà, Rosario Borelli, Eugenio Maggi, Georges Bréhart
ADDIO, NAPOLI!, a.k.a. GOODBYE NAPLES (1955) DIR Roberto Bianchi Montero PROD Antonio Ferrigno SCR Edoardo Anton, Mario Pellegrino, Ugo Guerra (story by Enzo Avitabile, Giuseppe Valentini) CAM Mario Nebiolo ED Mario Serandrei MUS Franco Langella CAST Tamara Lees, Andrea Checchi, Maria Grazia Francia, Giorgio De Lullo, Leopoldo Valentini, Charles Fawcett, Dante Maggio, Virna Lisi (Clara’s Friend [uncredited])
LUNA NOVA, a.k.a. NEW MOON (1955) DIR Luigi Capuano PROD Domenico Forges Davanzati SCR Luigi Capuano, Alfredo Giannetti, Vinicio Marinucci (story by Luigi Capuano) CAM Mario Albertelli ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Mario Nascimbene CAST Marc Lawrence, Barbara Shelley, Achille Togliani, Virna Lisi (Lucia), Eduardo Ciannelli, Beniamino Maggio, Turi Pandolfini, Leda Gloria
RIPUDIATA, a.k.a. DISOWNED (1955) DIR Giorgo Walter Chili SCR Giorgo Walter Chili, Federico Galli (story by Giorgo Walter Chili, Alfred Niblo) CAM Angelo Baistrocchi ED Rinaldo Montagnoni MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST Hélène Remy, Alberto Farnese, Laura Nucci, John Douglas, Emma Baron, Memmo Carotenuto, Vittorio Duse, Loris Gizzi, Henri Vidon, Gianni Rizzo, Augusto Pennella, Virna Lisi
LO SCAPOLO, a.k.a. THE BACHELOR (1955) DIR Antonio Pietrangeli PROD Maurice Ergas SCR Antonio Pietrangeli, Ettore Scola, Sandro Continenza, Ruggero Maccari (story by Antonio Pietrangeli) CAM Gianni Di Venanzo ED Eraldo Da Roma MUS Angelo Frencesco Lavagnino CAST Alberto Sordi, Madeleine Fischer, Sandra Milo, Anna Maria Pancani, Nino Manfredi, María Asquerino, Fernando Fernán Gómez, Virna Lisi (extra [uncredited])
LA ROSSA (1955) DIR Luigi Capuano PROD Fortunato Misiano SCR Luigi Capuano, Mario Volpe (story by Luigi Cioffi) CAM Giuseppe La Torre ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Giuseppe Cioffi, Michele Cozzoli CAST Virna Lisi (Maria), Fulvia Franco, Franco Ricci, Aldo Bufi Landi, Dante Maggio, Giacomo Furia, Anna Arena, Natalie Cirino
LES HUSSARDS, a.k.a. CAVALRYMEN (1955) DIR Alex Joffé PROD Ignace Morgenstern SCR Jean Halain, Gabriel Arout (play “Les hussards” [1953] by Pierre-Aristride Bréal) CAM Jean Bourgoin ED Henri Rust MUS Georges Auric CAST Bernard Blier, Giovanni Ralli, Bourvil, Alberto Bonucci, Carlo Campanini, Giani Esposito, Virna Lisi (Elisa), Clelia Matania, Franco Pesce, Georges Wilson
LE DICIOTTENNI, a.k.a. EIGHTEEN YEAR OLDS (1955) DIR Mario Mattoli PROD Carlo Ponti, Dino De Laurentiis SCR Mario Mattoli, Ennio De Concini, Carlo Musso, Aldo De Benedetti CAM Marco Scarpelli ED Roberto Cinquini MUS Armando Trovajoli CAST Marisa Allasio, Virna Lisi (Maria Rovani), Anthony Steffen, Luisella Boni, Adriana Benetti, Helene Partello, Helene Fiona, Marina Pedoia, Angela Doni
VENDICATA! (1956) DIR Giuseppe Vari PROD Edoardo Brescia SCR Aldo Crudo CAM Sergio Pesce MUS Carlo Innocenzi CAST Milli Vitale, Alberto Farnese, Jula De Palma, Gino Buzzanca, Teddy Reno, Gino Latilla, Francesco Cavicchi, Beniamino Maggio, Carla Calò, Giulio Donnini, Virna Lisi, Erminio Spalla
LA DONNA DEL GIORNO, a.k.a. THE DOLL THAT TOOK THE TOWN (1957) DIR Francesco Maselli PROD Lorenzo Pegoraro SCR Franco Bemporad, Bianca Della Nogara Feltrinelli, Francesco Maselli, Ageo Savioli, Cesare Zavattini (story by Franco Bemporad) CAM Armando Nannuzzi ED Mario Serandrei MUS Mario Zafred CAST Virna Lisi (Liliana Attenni), Antonio Cifariello, Haya Harareet, Elisa Cegani, Vittorio Sanipoli, Serge Regianni, Franco Fabrizi, Marcello Giorda, Mario Carotenuto
IL CONTE DI MATERA (1958) DIR Luigi Capuano PROD Fortunato Misiano SCR Vincenzo Talarico (story by Raffaele Dettole) CAM Augusto Tiezzi ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Michele Cozzoli CAST Virna Lisi (Greta Tramontana di Casamaiora), Otello Toso, Paul Muller, Giacomo Rossi Stuart, Wandisa Guida, Aldo Bufi Landi, Nietta Zocchi, Armando Migliari, Erminio Spalla, Pietro De Vico, Elena Sedlak, Renato Chiantoni
TOTÒ, PEPPINO E LE FANATICHE, a.k.a. TOTO, PEPPINO AND THE FANTASTICS (1958) DIR Mario Mattoli PROD Renato Libassi, Isidoro Broggi SCR Furio Scarpelli, Steno, Agenore Incricci, Ruggero Maccari (story Furio Scarpelli, Agenore Incricci, Ruggero Maccari) CAM Anchise Brizzi ED Gisa Radicchi Levi MUS Michele Cozzoli CAST Totò, Peppino De Filippo, Johnny Dorelli, Alessandra Panaro, Mario Riva, Renato Carasone, Virna Lisi (Ragazza), Aroldo Tieri, Diana Dei
VITE PERDUTE, a.k.a. LOST SOULS (1959) DIR Adelchi Bianchi, Roberto Mauri PROD Federico Teti SCR Adelchi Bianchi, Gianni Putticini, Vittoriano Petrilli (story by Roberto Mauri) CAM Aldo Tonti ED Leo Catozzo MUS Bruno Canfora, Roberto Nicolosi CAST Virna Lisi (Anna), Jacques Sernas, Sandra Milo, Gabriele Tinti, John Kitzmiller, Annie Alberti, Marco Guglielmi, Roberto Mauri, Arturo Dominici
IL PADRONE DELLE FERRIERE (1959) DIR Anton Giulio Majano PROD Leo Cevenini, Vittorio Martino SCR Anton Giulio Majano (novel ‘Le Maître de forges” [1882] by Georges Ohnet) CAM Mario Montuori ED Nino Baragli MUS Angelo Francesco Lavagnino CAST Antonio Vilar, Virna Lisi (Claire de Beaulieu), Wandisa Guida, Dario Michaelis, Evi Mantagliati, Mario Girotti, Cathia Caro, Susanna Campos, Ivo Garrani, Warner Bentivegna, Terence Hill
IL MONDO DEI MIRACOLI, a.k.a. WORLD OF MIRACLES (1959) DIR Luigi Capuano PROD Fortunato Misiano SCR (story by Oscar Andriani) CAM Augusto Tiezzi ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Michele Cozzoli CAST Vittorio De Sica, Virna Lisi (Laura Damiani), Jacques Sernas, Marisa Merlini, Aldo Silvani, Elli Parvo, Kerima, Yvonne Sanson, Amedeo Nazzari, Andrea Checchi
CATERINA SFORZA, LA LEONESSA DI ROMAGNA (1959) DIR – SCR Giorgio Walter Chili CAM Angelo Baistrocchi ED Ettore Salvi MUS Carlo Rusticchelli CAST Virna Lisi (Caterina Sforza), Carlo Giuffrè, Sergio Fantoni, Pierre Cressoy, Rik Battaglia, Alberto Farnese, Cesare Fantoni, Cesare Donnini, Roy Ciccolini, Erno Crisa, Laura Nucci
UN MILITARE E MEZZO (1960) DIR Steno PROD Silvio Clementelli SCR Steno, Mario Amendola, Aldo Fabrizi, Vittorio Metz, Ruggero Maccari, Roberto Gianviti CAM Tino Santoni ED Mario Derandrei MUS Armando Trovajoli CAST Aldo Fabrizi, Renato Rascel, Virna Lisi (Anita Rossi), Robert Alda, Mario Girotti [Terence Hill], Vicky Ludovisi, Ruggero Macchi, Audrey McDonald
SUA ECCELLENZA SI FERMÒ A MANGIARE, a.k.a. HIS EXCELLENCY STAYED TO DINNER (1961) DIR Mario Mattoli PROD Isidoro Broggi, Renato Libassi SCR Roberto Gianviti, Vittorio Metz CAM Alvaro Mancori ED Gisa Radicchi Levi MUS Gianni Ferrio CAST Ugo Tognazzi, Virna Lisi (Silvia), Totò, Lauretta Masiero, Lia Zoppelli, Francesco Mulè, Vittorio Cognia, Pietro De Vico, Mario Stiletti, Nando Bruno
5 MARINES PER 100 RAGAZZE (1961) DIR Mario Mattoli PROD Antonio Colantuoni SCR Franco Castellano, Giuseppe Moccia (story by Franco Castellano, Giuseppe Moccia) CAM Riccardo Pallottini ED Roberto Cinquini MUS Gianni Ferrio CAST Virna Lisi (Grazia), Mario Carotenuto, Hélène Chanel, Little Tony, Vicky Lodivici, Vittorio Congia, Daniela Calvino, Paul Wynter, Raffaella Carrà, Sergio Raimondi
ROMOLO E REMO, a.k.a. DUEL OF THE TITANS (1961) DIR Sergio Corbucci PROD Alessandro Jacovoni, Tonino Cervi SCR Sergio Corbucci, Sergio Leone, Ennio De Concini, Luciano Martino, Duccio Tessari, Franco Rossetti (story by Sergio Corbucci, Luciano Martino) CAM Enzo Barboni ED Gabriele Varriale MUS Piero Piccioni CAST Steve Reeves, Gordon Scott, Virna Lisi (Julia), Franco Volpi, Laura Solari, Piero Lulli, José Greci, Gianni Musy, Jacques Sernas
EVA (1962) DIR Joseph Losey PROD Robert Hakim, Raymond Hakim SCR (novel “Eve” [1945] by James Hadley Chase; adaptation by Hugo Butler, Evan Jones) CAM Gianni Di Venanzo ED Franca Silvi, Reginald Beck MUS Michel Legrand CAST Jeanne Moreau, Stanley Baker, Virna Lisi (Francesca Ferrara), Giorgi Albertazzi, James Villiers, Riccardo Garrone, Lisa Gastoni, Checco Rissone, Enzo Fiermonte, Nona Medici, Roberto Paoletti, Vittorio De Sica, Joseph Losey
IL GIORNO PIÙ CORTO, a.k.a. THE SHORTEST DAY (1963) DIR Sergio Corbucci PROD Goffredo Lombardo SCR (dialogue by Bruno Corbucci, Sandro Continenza, Giorgio Arlorio, Giovanni Grimaldi; story by Sandro Continza) CAM Enzo Barboni ED Ruggero Mastroianni MUS Piero Piccioni CAST Ciccio Ingrassia, Franco Franchi, Gino Cervi, Totò, Annie Girardot, Ugo Tognazzi, Eduardo De Filippo, Peppino De Filippo, Aldo Fabrizi, Gabriele Ferzetti, Philippe Leroy, Romolo Valli, Anouk Aimée, Sylva Koscina, Virna Lisi (Naja), Jean-Paul Belmondo, Stewart Granger, Terence Hill, Walter Pidgeon, Gordon Scott, Jacques Sernas
LES BONNES CAUSES, a.k.a. DON’T TEMPT THE DEVIL (1963) DIR Christian-Jacque PROD Georges Cheyko SCR Christian-Jacque, Paul Andréota (novel “Les Bonnes Causes” [1960] by Jean Laborde) CAM Armand Thirard ED Jacques Desagneaux MUS Georges Garvarentz CAST Bourvil, Marina Vlady, Virna Lisi (Gina Bianchi), Pierre Brasseur, Umberto Orsini, Mony Dalmès, Jacques Monod, Jacques Mauclair, Jean-Loup Philippe
LA TULIPE NOIRE, a.k.a. THE BLACK TULIP (1964) DIR Christian-Jacque PROD Georges Cheyko SCR Christian-Jacque, Paul Andréota, Henri Jeanson (novel “La Tulipe Noire” [1850] by Alexandre Dumas) CAM Henri Decaë ED Jacques Desagneaux MUS Gérard Calvi CAST Alain Delon, Virna Lisi (Caroline ‘Caro’ Plantin), Dawn Adams, Akim Tamiroff, Adolfo Marsillach, Jorge Rigaud, Laura Valenzuela, Robert Manuel, Francis Blanche
CAPLON PREND DES RISQUES, a.k.a. COPLAN TAKES RISKS (1964) DIR Maurice Labro PROD François Chavane SCR Jean Marsan, Jean-Louis Roncoroni (novel “Étau sans pitié” [1956] by Paul Kenny) CAM Pierre Petit ED Germaine Artus MUS Georges Van Parys CAST Dominique Paturel, Virna Lisi (Ingrid Carlsen), Jacques Balutin, Roger Dutoit, Jacques Monod, André Valmy, Yves Arcanel
LE BAMBOLE, a.k.a. THE DOLLS and THE DOLL THAT TOOK THE TOWN and FOUR KINDS OF LOVE (1965) DIR Mauro Bolognini, Luigi Comencini, Dino Rosi [segment LA TELEFONATA], Franco Rossi PROD Gianni Hecht Lucari SCR Rodolfo Senego (also story, segment LA TELEFONATA] CAM Ennio Guarnieri [segment LA TELEFONATA] ED Roberto Cinquini [segment LA TELEFONATA] MUS Armando Trovajoli CAST [segment LA TELEFONATA] Nino Manfredi, Virna Lisi (Luisa), Alicia Brandet
HOW TO MURDER YOUR WIFE (1965) DIR Richard Quine PROD – SCR George Axelrod CAM Harry Stradling Sr. ED David Wages MUS Neal Hefti CAST Jack Lemmon, Virna Lisi (Mrs. Ford), Terry-Thomas, Eddie Mayehoff, Claire Trevor, Sidney Blackmer, Max Showalter, Jack Albertson, Mary Wickes, Barry Kelley
CASANOVA ’70 (1965) DIR Mario Monicelli PROD Carlo Ponti SCR Agenore Incrocci [Age], Furio Scarpelli [Scarpelli], Mario Monicelli, Suso Cecchi D’Amico, Tonino Guerra, Giorgio Salvioni (story by Agenore Incrocci [Age], Furio Scarpelli [Scarpelli], Mario Monicelli, Suso Cecchi D’Amico, Tonino Guerra, Giorgio Salvioni) CAM Aldo Tinto ED Adriana Novelli MUS Armando Trovajoli CAST Marcello Mastroianni, Virna Lisi (Gigliola), Marisa Mell, Enrico Maria Salerno, Liana Orfei, Guido Alberti, Michèle Mercier, Moira Orfei, Jolanda Modio, Margaret Lee, Marco Ferreri, Bernard Blier
LA DONNA DEL LAGO, a.k.a. THE POSSESSED (1965) DIR Luigi Bazzoni, Franco Rossellini PROD Manolo Bolognini SCR Luigi Bazzoni, Franco Rossellini, Giulio Questi (novel “La donna del lago” [1962] by Giovanni Comisso) CAM Leonida Barboni ED Nino Baragli MUS Renzo Rossellini CAST Peter Bladwin, Salvo Randone, Valentina Cortese, Pia Lindström, Philippe Leroy, Virna Lisi (Tilde)
UNA VERGINE PER IL PRINCIPE, a.k.a. A MAIDEN FOR A PRINCE (1965) DIR Pasquale Festa Campanile PROD Mario Cecchi Gori, Claude Ganz SCR Pasquale Festa Campanile (also story) CAM Roberto Gerardi ED Otello Colangeli, Ruggero Mastroianni MUS Luis bacalov CAST Vitorio Gassman, Virna Lisi (Giulia), Philippe Leroy, Vittorio Caprioli, Anna Maria Guarnieri, Maria Grazia Buccella, Tino Buazelli, Paola Borboni, Giusi Raspani Dandolo
OGGI, DOMANI, DOPODOMANI, a.k.a. KISS THE OTHER SHEIK (1965) DIR Eduardo De Filippo [segment L’ORA DI PUNTA], Marco Ferreri, Luciano Salce PROD Carlo Ponti SCR Eduardo De Filippo, Isabella Quarantotti ([segment L’ORA DI PUNTA]; based on the play “Pericolosamente”) CAM Mario Montouri [segment L’ORA DI PUNTA] ED Adriana Novelli [segment L’ORA DI PUNTA] MUS Nino Rota [segment L’ORA DI PUNTA] CAST [segment L’ORA DI PUNTA] Virna Lisi (Dorotea), Luciano Salce
MADE IN ITALY (1965) DIR Nanni Loy PROD Gianni Hecht Lucari SCR Nanni Loy, Ettore Scola, Ruggero Maccari (story by Nanni Loy, Ettore Scola, Ruggero Maccari) CAM Ennio Guarnieri ED Ruggero Mastroianni MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST [segment 3 LA DONNA, EPISODE 1] Virna Lisi (Virginia), Giulio Bosetti
SIGNORE & SIGNORI, a.k.a. THE BIRDS, THE BEES AND THE ITALIANS (1966) DIR Pietro Germi PROD Pietro Germi, Robert Haggiag SCR Pietro Germi, Agenore Incrocci [Age], Furio Scarpelli [Scarpelli], Luciano Vincenzoni (story by Pietro Germi, Luciano Vincenzoni) CAM Aiace Parolin ED Sergio Montanari MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST Virna Lisi (Milena Zulian), Gastone Moschin, Olga Villi, Alberto Lionello, Beba Loncar, Franco Fabrizi, Nora Ricci, Gigi Ballista, Gia Sandri, Quinto Parmeggiani, Moira Orfei
ASSAULT ON A QUEEN (1966) DIR Jack Donohue PROD William Goetz SCR Rod Serling (novel “Assault On a Queen” [1959] by Jack Finney) CAM William H. Daniels ED Archie Marshek MUS Duke Ellington CAST Frank Sinatra, Virna Lisi (Rosa Lucchesi), Richard Conte, Errol John, Alf Kjellin, Tony Franciosa, Murray Matheson, Reginald Denny, John Warburton, Lester Matthews, Val Avery
NOT WITH MY WIFE, YOU DON’T! (1966) DIR – PROD Norman Panama PROD SCR Norman Panama, Larry Gelbart, Peter Barnes (story by Norman Panama, Melvin Frank) CAM Charles Lang ED Aaron Stell MUS Johnny Williams CAST Tony Curtis, Virna Lisi (Julietta Parodi/Julie Ferris), George C. Scott, Carroll O’Connor, Richard Eastham, Eddie Ryder, George Tyne, Ann Doran
LA VINGT-CINQUIÈME HEURE, a.k.a. THE 25TH HOUR (1967) DIR Henri Verneuil PROD Carlo Ponti SCR Henri Verneuil, François Boyer, Wolf Mankowitz (novel “The 25th Hour” [1949] by C. Virgil Gheorghiu) CAM Andréas Winding ED Françoise Bonnot MUS Georges Delerue CAST Anthony Quinn, Virna Lisi (Suzanna Moritz), Grégoire Aslan, Michael Redgrave, Marcel Dalio, Jan Werich, Marius Goring, Alexander Knox, Serge Reggiani
LA RAGAZZA E IL GENERALE, a.k.a. THE GIRL AND THE GENERAL (1967) DIR Pasquale Festa Campanile PROD Carlo Ponti SCR Pasquale Festa Campanile, Luigi Malerba (story by Pasquale Festa Campanile, Massimo Franciosa) CAM Ennio Guarnieri ED Jolanda Benvenuti MUS Ennio Morricone CAST Rod Steiger, Virna Lisi (Ada), Umberto Orsini, Tony Gaggia, Marco Mariani, Jacques Herlin
LE DOLCI SIGNORE, a.k.a. ANYONE CAN PLAY (1967) DIR Luigi Zampa PROD Gianni Hecht Lucari SCR Ettore Scola, Stefano Strucchi, Ruggero Maccari CAM Ennio Guarnieri ED Nino Baragli MUS Armando Trovajoli CAST Ursula Andress, Virna Lisi (Luisa), Claudine Auger, Marisa Bell, Brett Halsey, Lando Buzzanca, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Vittorio Caprioli, Frank Wolff
ARABELLA (1967) DIR Mauro Bolognini PROD Maleno Malenotti SCR Giorgio Arlorio, Adriano Baracco, Brunello Rondi CAM Ennio Guarnieri ED Eraldo Da Roma MUS Ennio Morricone CAST Virna Lisi (Arabella), James Fox, Margaret Rutherford, Terry-Thomas, Paola Borboni, Giancarlo Giannini, Antonio Casagrande, Milena Vukotic, Esmeralda Ruspoli
TENDERLY, a.k.a. THE GIRL WHO COULDN’T SAY NO (1968) DIR Franco Brusati PROD Luciano Perugia SCR Franco Brusati, Ennio De Concini CAM Ennio Guarnieri ED Franco Arcalli MUS Riz Ortolani CAST Virna Lisi (Yolanda), George Segal, Lila Kedrova, Paola Pitagora, Akim Tamiroff, Luciano Mondolfo, Mario Brega, Vera Nandi, Riccardo Billi
MEGLIO VEDOVA, a.k.a. BETTER A WIDOW (1968) DIR Duccio Tessari PROD Turi Vasile SCR Duccio Tessari, Ennio De Concini, Adriana Baracco, Tudor Gates, Brian Gates (story by Ennio De Concini) CAM Ennio Guarnieri ED Maria Morra, Romano Trina MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST Virna Lisi (Rosa Minniti), Peter McEnery, Gabriele Ferzetti, Jean Servais, Agnes Spaak, Nino Terzo, Carla Calò, Lando Buzzanca
THE SECRET OF SANTA VITTORIA (1969) DIR – PROD Stanley Kramer SCR William Rose, Ben Maddow (novel “The Secret of Santa Vittoria” [1966] by Robert Crichton) CAM Giuseppe Rotunno ED Earle Herdan, William A. Lyon MUS Ernest Gold CAST Anthony Quinn, Anna Magnani, Virna Lisi (Caterina), Hardy Kruger, Sergio Franchi, Renato Rascel, Giancarlo Giannini, Patrizia Valturri, Eduardo Ciannelli, Valentina Cortese
L’ARBRE DE NOËL, a.k.a. THE CHRISTMAS TREE (1969) DIR Terence Young PROD Robert Dorfmann SCR Terence Young (novel “L’Arbre de Noël” [1967] by Michel Bataille) CAM Henri Alekam ED Monique Bonnot, Johnny Dwyre MUS Georges Auric CAST William Holden, Virna Lisi (Catherine Graziani), Bourvil, Brook Fuller, Madeleine Damien, Mario Feliciani, Friedrich von Ledebur, Georges Douking, Michel Thomass, Maria Schneider
IF IT’S TUESDAY, THIS MUST BE BELGIUM (1969) DIR Mel Stuart PROD Stan Margulies SCR David Shaw (also story) CAM Vilis Lapenieks ED David Saxon MUS Walter Scharf CAST Ian McShane, Suzanne Pleshette, Vittorio De Sica, Murray Hamilton, Sandy Baron, Mario Carotenuto, Paul Esser, Pamela Britton, Norman Fell, Donovan, Catherine Spaak, Mildred Natwick, Senta Berger, Joan Collins, Robert Vaughn, John Cassavetes, Ben Gazzara, Patricia Routledge, Anita Ekberg, Elsa Martinelli, Virna Lisi (John’s Cousin in Rome)
LE TEMPS DES LOUPS, a.k.a. THE HEIST and CARBON COPY (1970) DIR Sergio Gobbi PROD Sergio Gobbi, Raymond Danon, Ralph Baum SCR Sergio Gobbi (adaptation by Sergio Gobbi, André Tabet, Georges Tabet) CAM Daniel Diot ED Gabriel Rongier MUS Georges Garvarentz CAST Robert Hossein, Charles Aznavour, Virna Lisi (Stella Menzoni), Albert Minski, Genevière Thénier, Monique Morisi, Henri Crémieux, Roger Coggio, Marcel Bozuffi
GIUOCHI PAARTICOLARI, a.k.a. THE VOYEUR (1970) DIR Franco Indovina PROD Franco Indovina, Turi Vasile SCR Franco Indovina, Tonino Guerra (story by Franco Indovina) CAM Arturo Zavattini ED Roberto Perpignani MUS Ennio Morricone CAST Marcello Mastroianni, Virna Lisi (Claude), Timothy Dalton, John Serret, Aram Stephan
THE STATUE (1971) DIR Rod Amateau PROD Anis Nohra SCR Alec Coppel, Denis Norden (play “Chip Chip Chip” [1966] by Alec Coppel) CAM Piero Portalupi ED Ernest Hosler MUS Riz Ortolani CAST David Niven, Virna Lisi (Rhonda Bolt), Robert Vaughn, Ann Bell, John Cleese, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Hugh Burden, Erik Chitty, Derek Francis, Graham Chapman
UN BEAU MONSTRE, a.k.a. LOVE ME STRANGELY (1971) DIR Sergio Gobbi PROD Sergio Gobbi, Ugo Santalucia SCR Sergio Gobbi (novel “Un beau monstre” [1968] by Dominique Fabre; adaptation by Sergio Gobbi) CAM Danet Diot ED Gabriel Rongier MUS Georges Garvarentz CAST Virna Lisi (Nathalie Revent), Helmut Berger, Charles Aznavour, Alain Noury, Marc Cassot, Françoise Brion, Edith Scob, Yves Brainville, Henri Crémieux, Robert Le Béal, Howard Vernon, Nicole Gobbi, Patrizia Aznavour
ROMA BENE, a.k.a. LOVE AND SEX IN ROME (1975) DIR Carlo Lizzani PROD Nino Crisman SCR Carlo Lizzani, Nicola Badalucco, Edith Bieber, Luciano Vincenzoni (story by Carlo Lizzani, Nicola Badalucco, Edith Bieber, Luciano Vincenzoni) CAM Giuseppe Ruzzolini ED Franco Fraticelli MUS Luis Bacalov CAST Virna Lisi (Silvia Santi), Nino Manfredi, Senta Berger, Irene Papas, Michèle Mercier, Umberto Orsini, Philippe Leroy, Gigi Ballista
LES GALETS D’ÉTRETAT, a.k.a. THE PEBBLES OF ÉTRETAT AND COBBLESTONES (1972) DIR Sergio Gobbi SCR Vahé Katcha (adaptation by Sergio Gobbi, Vahé Katcha) CAM Daniel Diot ED Gabriel Rongier MUS Georges Garvarentz CAST Virna Lisi (Alny), Maurice Ronet, Annie Corby, Juliette Mills, Christian Barbier, Amarande, Grégoire Aslan, Nicole Gobbi, Dominique Zardi
BLUEBEARD (1972) DIR Edward Dmytryk PROD Alexander Salkind SCR Edward Dmytryk, Maria Pia Fusco, Ennio De Concini (story by Edward Dmytryk, Maria Pia Fusco, Ennio De Concini) CAM Gábor Pogàny ED Jean Ravel MUS Ennio Morricone CAST Richard Burton, Raquel Welch, Virna Lisi (The Singer), Nathalie Delon, Marilù Tolo, Karin Schubert, Agostina Belli, Sybil Danning, Edward Meeks, Doka Bukova, Jean Lefebvre, Matthieu Carrière
LE SERPENT, a.k.a. NIGHT FLIGHT FROM MOSCOW (1972) DIR – PROD Henri Verneuil SCR Henri Verneuil, Gilles Perrault (novel “Le treizième suicidé” [1970] by Pierre Nord) CAM Claude Renoir ED Pierre Gillette MUS Ennio Morricone CAST Yul Brynner, Henry Fonda, Dirk Bogarde, Virna Lisi (Annabel Lee), Philippe Noiret, Michel Bouquet, Guy Tréjan, Elga Anderson, Farley Granger, Marie Dubois, Robert Alda
ZANNA BIANCA, a.k.a. WHITE FANG (1973) DIR Lucio Fulci SCR Roberto Gianviti, Guillaume Roux, Piero Regnoli, Thom Keyes, Guy Elmes, Harry Alan Towers [Peter Welbeck] (novel “White Fang” [1906] by Jack London; adaptation by Harry Alan Towers [Peter Welbeck]) CAM Erico Menczer ED Ornella Micheli MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST Franco Nero, Virna Lisi (Sister Evangelina), Fernando Rey, John Steiner, Raimund Harmstorf, Rick Battaglia, Daniel Martin, Daniele Dublino, Maurice Poli
IL RITORNO DI ZANNA BIANCA, a.k.a. CHALLENGE TO WHITE FANG (1974) DIR Lucio Fulci SCR Lucio Fulci, Roberto Gianviti, Alberto Gianviti (story by Roberto Gianviti, Alberto Gianviti; characters created by Jack London) CAM Silvano Ippoliti ED Ornella Micheli MUS Carlo Rustichelli CAST Franco Nero, Virna Lisi (Sister Evangelina), John Steiner, Raimund Harmstorf, Yanti Somer, Werner Pochath, Hannelore Elsner, Renato De Carmine, Harry Carey Jr., Renato Cestiè
AL DI LÀ DEL BENE E DEL MALE, a.k.a. BEYOND GOOD AND EVIL (1977) DIR Liliana Cavani PROD Robert Gordon Edwards SCR Liliana Cavani, Italo Moscati, Franco Arcalli (story by Liliana Cavani) CAM Armando Nannuzzi ED Franco Arcalli MUS Daniele Paris CAST Dominque Sanda, Erland Josephson, Robert Powell, Virna Lisi (Elisabeth), Philippe Leroy, Carmen Scarpitta, Amedeo Amodio, Michael Degen, Nicoletta Machiavelli, Elisa Cegani
ERNESTO (1979) DIR Salvatore Samperi SCR Salvatore Samperi, Amedeo Pagani, Barbara Alberti (novel “Ernesto” [1975] by Umberto Saba) CAM Camillo Bazzoni ED Sergio Montanari MUS Carmelo A. Bernaola CAST Martin Halm, Michele Placido, Virna Lisi (Ernesto’s Mother), Turo Ferri, Lara Wendel, Conchita Velasco, Renato Salvatori, Gisela Hahn, Stefano Madia
BUGIE BIANCHE, a.k.a. VENETIAN LIES (1979) DIR Setfano Rolla PROD Asao Kumada SCR Stefano Rolla, Silvia Napolitano, Leros Pittoni CAM Mario Vulpiani ED Franco Fraticelli MUS Ennio Morricone CAST Max von Sydow, Virna Lisi (Luisa Herrighe), Ronnie Valente, Monica Paglicci, Annamaria Bramante, Carlo Russo, Bruno Miani, Roberto Milani
LA CICALA, a.k.a. THE CRICKET (1980) DIR Alberto Lattuada PROD Ibrahim Moussa SCR Alberto Lattuada, Franco Ferreri, Ashik Elahi (story by Natalie Prinetto, Marina Di Leo) CAM Danilo Desideri ED Sergio Montanari MUS Fred Bongusto CAST Anthony Franciosa, Virna Lisi (Wilma), Renato Salvatori, Clio Goldsmith, Barbara De Rossi, Michael Coby, Mario Maranzana, Riccardo Garrone, Imelde Marani
MISS RIGHT (1982) DIR Paul Williams PROD Ibrahim Moussa SCR William Tepper (story by William Tepper, Paul Williams) CAM Franco Di Giacomo ED Alessandro Lucidi MUS Michael Small CAST Karen Black, Margot Kidder, Virna Lisi (Anna), Marie-France Pisier, William Tepper, Clio Goldsmith, Dalila Di Lazzaro, Leo Gullotta, Michael Davis, Jeff Blynn, George Gennissia, Paul Williams, Jenny Agutter
SAPORE DI MARE, a.k.a. TIME FOR LOVING (1983) DIR Carlo Vanzina PROD Pio Angeletti, Adriano De Micheli SCR Carlo Vanzina, Enrico Vanzina CAM Giuseppe Maccari ED Raimondo Crociani MUS Mariano Perrella, Edoardo Vianello CAST Jerry Calà, Marina Suma, Christian De Sica, Angelo Cannavaccioli, Karina Huff, Isabella Ferrari, Gianni Ansaldi, Giorgio Fioro, Virna Lisi (Adriana Balestra), Ugo Bologna
AMARSI UN PO’…, a.k.a. TO LOVE A LITTLE (1984) DIR Carlo Vanzina PROD Mario Cecchi Gori, Vittorio Cecchi Gori SCR Carlo Vanzina, Enrico Vanzina CAM Claudio Cirillo ED Raimondo Crociani MUS Mario Lavezzi CAST Claudio Amendola, Tahnee Welch, Virna Lisi (Princess Maria Cellini), Mario Brega, Riccardo Garrone, Rossana Di Lorenzo, Paolo Baroni, Fabrizio Bracconeri, Nicoletta Elmi, Marco Urbinati
I LOVE N.Y. (1987) DIR – PROD – SCR Gianni Bozzacchi [Alan Smithee] CAM Danielle Nannuzzi ED Roberto Silvi MUS Bill Conti CAST Scott Baio, Kelly Van der Velden, Christopher Plummer, Jennifer O’Neill, Jerry Orbach, Virna Lisi (Anna Cotone), John Armstead, Lisanne Falk, Jusak Bernhard, Patti Kelly Beyer, Morgan Most
I RAGAZZI DI VIA PANISPERNA (1988) DIR Gianni Amelio SCR Gianni Amelio, Alessandro Sermoneta (story by Gianni Amelio, Vincenzo Cerami) CAM Tonino Nardi ED Roberto Perpignani MUS Riz Ortolani CAST Andrea Prodan, Ennio Fantastichini, Michele Melega, Alberto Gimignani, Giovanni Romani, Giorgio Dal Piaz, Laura Morante, Mario Adorf, Virna Lisi (Signora Majorana)
BUON NATALE… BUON ANNO, a.k.a. MERRY CHRISTMAS… HAPPY NEW YEAR (1989) DIR Luigi Comencini PROD Fabrio Cricuolo, Luigi Patrizi, Jacques Bar SCR Luigi Comencini, Christina Comencini, Raffaele Festa Campanile (novel “Buon Natale… Buon anno” [1986] by Raffaele Festa Campanile) CAM Armando Nannuzzi ED Sergio Buzi MUS Fiorenze Carpi CAST Virna Lisi (Elvira), Michel Serrault, Mattia Sbragia, Consuela Ferrara, Tiziani Pini, Nar Sene, Paolo Graziosi, Raffaele Di Mario
LA REINE MARGOT, a.k.a. QUEEN MARGOT (1994) DIR Patrice Chéreau PROD Claude Berri SCR Patrice Chéreau, Danièle Thompson (novel “La Reine Margot” [1845] by Alexandre Dumas) CAM Philippe Rousselot ED Hélène Viard, François Gédigier MUS Goran Bregovic CAST Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Jean-Hughes Anglade, Vincent Perez, Virna Lisi (Catherine de’ Medici), Dominique Blanc, Pascal Greggory, Claudio Amendola, Miguel Bose, Asia Argento, Julien Bassam, Thomas Kretschmann, Jean-Claude Brialy, Johan Leysen, Barbet Schroeder
VA’ DOVE TI PORTA IL CUORE, a.k.a. FOLLOW YOUR HEART (1996) DIR Cristina Comencini PROD Alessandro Parenzo SCR Cristina Comencini, Roberta Mazzoni (novel “Va’ dove ti porta il cuore” [1994] by Susanna Tamaro) CAM Roberto Forza ED Nino Baragli MUS Claudio Capponi, Alessio Vlad CAST Virna Lisi (Elderly Olga), Margherita Buy, Galatea Ranzi, Valentina Chico, Massimo Ghini, Tchéky Karyo, Francesca Bertolotti, Maria Grazia Bon, Luigi Diberti
IL PIÙ BEL GIORNO DELLA MIA VITA, a.k.a. THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE (2002) DIR Cristina Comencini PROD Marco Chimenz, Giovanni Stabilini, Riccardo Tozzi SCR Cristina Comencini, Lucilla Schiaffino (story by Cristina Comencini) CAM Fabio Cianchetti ED Cecilia Zanuso MUS Franco Piersanti CAST Virna Lisi (Irene), Margherita Buy, Sandra Ceccarelli, Luigi Lo Cascio, Marco Baliani, Marco Quaglia, Jean-Hughes Anglade, Ricky Tognazzi
LATIN LOVER (2015) DIR Cristina Comencini PROD Lionello Cerri SCR Cristina Comencini, Giulia Calenda CAM Italo Petriccione ED Francesca Calvelli MUS Andrea Farri CAST Virna Lisi (Rita), Marisa Paredes, Angela Finoccchiaro, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Candela Peña, Pihla Viitala, Nadeah Miranda, Francesco Scianna, Neri Marcorè, Claudio Gioè, Lluís Homar
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