Gruppo Di Famiglia In Un Interno (aka Conversation Piece) (1974)

An American professor (Burt Lancaster) living in quiet retirement in Rome finds himself coerced into renting the apartment above him to a spoiled wealthy woman (Silvana Mangano) who wants the apartment for her young lover (Helmut Berger). He finds his life turned into turmoil as the young man and his friends invade his former quiet existence. While Luchino Visconti is one of my favorite film makers, I'm not a fan of his later films like DEATH IN VENICE and THE DAMNED so I was quite surprised that I enjoyed this one so much. While there's a thin veil of politics brushed over the film, it's half hearted. The film is more about living and not taking chances. Lancaster's professor has led a "safe" life but has it been a happy one? The young people, irritating at first, bring him to the realization that he has missed out on the vitality that he should have had in his early life, leaving him with sour memories. Apparently Lancaster's professor wasn't all that different than Visconti and there's a sense of regret that imposes itself on the film. With Claudia Cardinale, Dominique Sanda, Romolo Valli, Claudia Marsani and Stefano Patrizi.