Escape by Night

An Italian film set in Rome. The year is 1943. Italy has surrendered and the Germans have taken the city. There is chaos in a prison. The doors open and the prisoners run. Three men are among them. An American, an Englishman and a Russian; all prisoners of war. They look for somewhere to hide in the city. Esperia is a woman. She works the black market; food, cigarettes, whatever she can find. She helps them. She finds an attic. She puts the three of them there. From there the film is a story of hiding. Months pass. Finding food is hard. Esperia goes out every day and may not come back. The three men do not know each other. They have no language in common and argue constantly. In time they get on. There is an Italian as well. Renato is in the resistance and is with Esperia. He is caught. What the narrative is interested in is not heroism but the everyday: its idea is that resistance consists not of great actions but of finding bread, not opening a door and not talking. The city is outside. Raids, identity checks, executions and neighbours informing. The narrative keeps these in the background and does not move its focus out of the attic. The Allies approach at the end. The three men have to go. The narrative gives no celebration. Roberto Rossellini made this years after his war trilogy. He takes up the same period, the same city and the same question again. The images are black and white and shot in real locations. The film screened at Venice. Leo Genn, Giovanna Ralli, Renato Salvatori and Sergei Bondarchuk are in the cast. Who it is for: anyone who likes Italian war cinema and Rossellini. Who it is not for: anyone looking for tension; the narrative takes place almost entirely in one room and there is very little incident.