Zingari (1920)

Le Giornate del Cinema Muto is the world’s leading international silent film festival. From 4 to 11 July 2025, EFSP contributor Ivo Blom is in Pordenone in Northern Italy to attend the 44th edition of the festival. And like Ivo, the festival is still going strong and presents many rediscoveries and highlights. Gabriele Perrone, Paolo Tosini, and Marco Grifo curated a programme on Italian diva Italia Almirante Manzini. Tonight, her film Zingari / The Gypsy Feud (1920) will be presented, accompanied by Günter Buchwald, Elizabeth-Jane Baldry and Frank Bockius. Italia Almirante stars as Vielka, the daughter of the King of the gypsies. The film was directed by her husband, Mario Almirante, for the Fert Film studio.


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920), starring Italia Almirante .


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: The first encounter between Vielka ( Italia Almirante ) and Sindel ( Amleto Novelli ). The woman Novelli carries may be Rosetta Solari, who plays Radscia.


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: Vielka challenges Sindel. The second woman may be Rosetta Solari.

A warm, vigorous and deeply human performance
In Zingari / The Gypsy Feud (1920), Old Jammadar (Alfonso Cassini), King of the gypsies, wants to marry his daughter Vielka ( Italia Almirante ) to Gudlo (Franz Sala), a member of an important and valuable clan, but also a violent and ambitious man.

Vielka, instead, loves the head of another clan, Sindel ( Amleto Novelli ). When Jammadar dies, Vielka is crowned Queen of the gypsies. The proud Sindel distances himself from the woman out of fear of becoming a prince's consort. The perfidious Gudlo wounds and betrays Sindel, but Vielka renounces her crown and thus regains Sindel's love, who chases Gudlo from the clan.

Zingari was produced by Fert Film and distributed by Pittaluga. The film was scripted and directed by Mario Almirante and photographed by Ubaldo Arata. It was one of Arata's first films. The active cinematographer did over 100 films between 1918 and 1947, including Roberto Rossellini's Roma città aperta / Rome, Open City (1945).

The film premiered on 27 December 1920. At the time, critics wrote mixed reviews. The Neapolitan Cine-Fono wrote that despite the luxurious mise-en-scene, the script and direction were not top-notch, while Italia Almirante was beautiful but too external and lacking psychology, and her co-star, Amleto Novelli, was straight-jacked in his acting.

Instead, the Roman journal Febo wrote that despite well-known romantic elements, the story was solid, convincing and at times original. Also, the mise-en-scène was impeccable, faithful to the interiors, and picturesque for the exteriors, while the film technology used showed modernity and innovation. Among the performances of the actors, in particular that of Italia Almirante was singled out as warm, vigorous and deeply human.


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: Jammadar (Alfonso Cassini) shouts to Vielka ( Italia Almirante ): I will crush you!


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: Jammadar forces Vielka to marry Gudlo.


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: Vielka returns to the gypsy wagon.


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: Vielka ( Italia Almirante ) tends to the wounded Sindel ( Amleto Novelli ) in her wagon.


Italian postcard for Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920). Caption: The gypsy camp.


Publicity still for Le Giornate del Cinema Muto 2025. Credits: CSC - Cineteca Nazionale. Italia Almirante Manzini in Zingari (Mario Almirante, 1920).

Sources: Vittorio Martinelli (Il cinema muto italiano 1920 - Italian), Wikipedia (Italian and English), and IMDb.