Still Banned After All These Years- Retracing the Journey of Cavani’s ‘Revolutionary’ Galileo (1968)

Angeli, S. 2017. Still Banned After All These Years- Retracing the Journey of Cavani’s ‘Revolutionary’ Galileo (1968). Journal of Religion & Film. 21 (2) 16.

TitleStill Banned After All These Years- Retracing the Journey of Cavani’s ‘Revolutionary’ Galileo (1968)
TypeJournal article
AuthorsAngeli, S.
Abstract

“Revolutionary” and “scandalous” are adjectives the late Ettore Bernabei, General Director of Italian State Television (RAI) from 1961 to 1974, used to describe Liliana Cavani’s Galileo (1968) in a 2005 interview for Corriere della Sera. Such harsh judgment reflects the undiminished hostility of a significant branch of Italian Catholicism toward the film. The fact that almost 50 years after its release Galileo has yet to be broadcast on public television despite being commissioned by it unequivocally confirms this hostility. Based on primary sources such as press articles and archival sources, this article chronicles Galileo’s incredible journey through the labyrinth of censorship and Catholic reception, revealing the complexities and mechanisms that regulate religious, political, and cultural life in Italy as well as the splintered nature of Italian Catholicism.

KeywordsItalian Cinema
Catholicism
Galileo Galilei
Giordano Bruno
Censorship
RAI
Article number16
JournalJournal of Religion & Film
Journal citation21 (2)
ISSN1092-1311
Year2017
PublisherUniversity of Nebraska Press
Publisher's version
File Access Level
Open (open metadata and files)
Web address (URL)http://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/jrf/vol21/iss2/16
Publication dates
Published30 Sep 2017

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