L'Eredita Ferramonti (aka The Inheritance) (1976)

Set in 19th century Italy, a wealthy man (Anthony Quinn) retires and sells his bakery. But he has nothing but contempt for his two sons, a ne'er do well (Fabio Testi) and a half wit (Gigi Proietti) plus a bitch daughter (Adriana Asti) married to a corrupt government official (Paolo Bonacelli). But he promises them they will will get nothing when he dies as he has cut them out of his will.  But when the half wit marries a seemingly modest young woman (Dominique Sanda), they use her as a pawn to get back at their father ..... or is she using them?  Based on the novel by Gaetano Carlo Chelli, director Mauro Bolognini whips up an intense cat and mouse game where you're never sure who's playing who nor what the outcome will be. Unfortunately, the ending seems right out of a 1940s Hollywood flick where the wicked must be punished but considering all of the characters are either immoral or amoral perhaps the wicked manage to win after all. It's a handsome looking film with Ennio Guarnieri's (SWEPT AWAY) soft focus cinematography at the forefront and a typical Ennio Morricone score nudging the film along. Sanda won the best actress award at the Cannes film festival for her work here.