D'Annunzio (1985)

The Italian biopic D’Annunzio (1985) takes an illuminating and even-handed look at Gabriele D’Annunzio, the poet, novelist, daredevil, and war hero whose system of thought was a crucial precursor to Benito Mussolini’s fascist dictatorship. Robert Powell stars as the foppish protagonist in a film that strives to make sense of D’Annunzio’s life, work, and belief system. One of the figure’s lesser-known traits is his penchant for womanizing: Eva Grimaldi, Florence Guérin, and Stefania Sandrelli star as a few of the women D’Annunzio toyed with before he cast them aside. Each actress finds time to cast off her period dress for some gloriously revealing bouncing on the bedsprings.