1

Edvard Munch is a 1973 biographical film about the Norwegian Expressionist painter Edvard Munch, written and directed by Peter Watkins.

Edvard Munch è un film biografico del 1973 sul pittore espressionista norvegese Edvard Munch, scritto e diretto da Peter Watkins.

2

It was originally created as a three-part miniseries co-produced by the Norwegian and Swedish state television networks NRK and SVT, and has subsequently been shown as a three-hour feature film.

Originariamente fu ideato come miniserie in tre puntate co-prodotta dalle reti televisive di Stato norvegese e svedese, la NRK e la SVT, e, successivamente, è stato trasmesso come film della durata di tre ore.

3

The film covers about thirty years of Munch's life, focusing on the influences that shaped his art, particularly the prevalence of disease and death in his family and his youthful affair with a married woman.

Il film ripercorre circa trent’anni della vita di Munch, concentrandosi sulle influenze che ne forgiarono l’arte, in particolare l'atmosfera prevalente di malattia e morte nell’ambito della sua famiglia e la sua relazione giovanile con una donna sposata.

4

Like Watkins' other films, Edvard Munch uses a combination of dramatic and documentary techniques:

Come gli altri film di Watkins, Edvard Munch fa uso di una combinazione di tecniche teatrali e documentaristiche:

5

scenes from Munch's life are enacted by a large cast (mostly Norwegian and mostly nonprofessional actors), but there is also a voiceover narration by Watkins, and there are documentary-style segments in which the characters speak directly to an interviewer about their own lives or their opinions of Munch.

scene della vita di Munch sono recitate da un cast numeroso (prevalentemente norvegesi e, per la maggior parte, attori non professionisti), ma c’è anche la voce fuori campo del narratore Watkins, e ci sono parti in stile documentario in cui i personaggi parlano direttamente a un intervistatore della loro vita o delle loro opinioni su Munch.

6

Some of the dialogue was improvised by the cast, especially in the interview segments;

Parte del dialogo venne improvvisato dal cast, specialmente nelle interviste;

7

to convey the hostile response Munch's work often received during his lifetime, Watkins recruited Norwegians who genuinely disliked the paintings.

Per permettere al pubblico di percepire la reazione ostile che l’opera di Munch spesso subì durante la sua vita, Watkins reclutò dei norvegesi che detestavano davvero i suoi quadri.

8

After its initial broadcast, the film was briefly an international success but then was not widely available for many years;

Dopo la trasmissione iniziale, il film fu per un breve periodo un successo internazionale ma in seguito non fu facilmente disponibile per diversi anni;

9

Watkins has said that network officials tried to suppress its distribution, and tried to bar it from competition in the Cannes Film Festival, because they disapproved of its use of nonprofessional actors and anachronistic dialogue.

Watkins ha detto che i dirigenti delle reti cercarono di impedirne la distribuzione e di vietarne la partecipazione al festival cinematografico di Cannes perché ne disapprovavano l’impiego di attori non professionisti e il dialogo anacronistico.

10

After NRK relinquished rights to the film in 2002, it gained a wider international release.

Dopo la rinuncia ai diritti da parte della NRK nel 2002, il film ottenne una più ampia diffusione internazionale.

Edvard Munch is a 1973 biographical film about the Norwegian Expressionist painter Edvard Munch, written and directed by Peter Watkins.

It was originally created as a three-part miniseries co-produced by the Norwegian and Swedish state television networks NRK and SVT, and has subsequently been shown as a three-hour feature film.

The film covers about thirty years of Munch's life, focusing on the influences that shaped his art, particularly the prevalence of disease and death in his family and his youthful affair with a married woman.

Like Watkins' other films, Edvard Munch uses a combination of dramatic and documentary techniques:

scenes from Munch's life are enacted by a large cast (mostly Norwegian and mostly nonprofessional actors), but there is also a voiceover narration by Watkins, and there are documentary-style segments in which the characters speak directly to an interviewer about their own lives or their opinions of Munch.

Some of the dialogue was improvised by the cast, especially in the interview segments;

to convey the hostile response Munch's work often received during his lifetime, Watkins recruited Norwegians who genuinely disliked the paintings.

After its initial broadcast, the film was briefly an international success but then was not widely available for many years;

Watkins has said that network officials tried to suppress its distribution, and tried to bar it from competition in the Cannes Film Festival, because they disapproved of its use of nonprofessional actors and anachronistic dialogue.

After NRK relinquished rights to the film in 2002, it gained a wider international release.