Toth Database - Cinema

Two money of hope

Year: 1952

Duration: 110 min

Color: B/N

Gender: Drama, Comedy

Director: Renato Castellani

Producer: Sandro Ghen zi, Antonio Roi – Univesalcine

Photograph: Arturo Gallea

Editing: Jolanda Welcome

Music: Alessandro Cicognini

Performers and characters

Maria Fiore:  Carmela

Vincenzo Musolino: Antonio Catalano

Luigi Astarita: Pasquale Artu

Carmela Cirillo: Giuliana

Gina Mascetti: Flora Angelini

Luigi Barone: Priest

Felicia Lettieri: Mrs. Arthur

Anna Raiola: Mrs. Bellomo

Plot

The 20-year-old Antonio Catalano, after his military service, returns to his Cusano, a small village in Irpinia; (actually the film was shot in Boscotrecase), where, unemployed, he has to provide for his widowed mother and with the vice of the lot game and five sisters of various ages. The beautiful bright immediately reserve the attentions, but carmela economic difficulties of both do not allow to plan a wedding, also because of Easter, her father, refused to help them. Antonio struggles as it can to put aside some money, especially since his sister Juliana has been compromised by a middle-aged landowner who refuses to marry her without a dowry: start as "assistant coaches" (the only link that exists between the country and the station is carried out by carriages, and Antonio helps push the horses in the steeper sections); then agree with the cabmen because sell horses and form a cooperative to operate a bus service, but the project failed and the greed of the shipwrecked cabmen; Why sell horses and form a cooperative to operate a bus service, but the project failed and the greed of the shipwrecked cabmen; do you hire to help Sexton by the pastor and simultaneously the night goes to Naples to partner with a Communist, but Carmela, fighting with other women, reveals the secret of his double work and the pastor, not wanting to have anything to do with the Communists , fire him, finally finds a job in Naples at Madame Flora Angelini, owner of movie theaters, to bring films from one room to another, but also to sell his blood to his son by her, who needs constant transfusions. Although the Lady is anything but indifferent to rude beauty God Antonio, he remains faithful to Carmela; This however, in the throes of jealousy, makes a scene at Angelini insomuch that Antony remains once again unemployed. Pasquale continues to refuse to give consent to the marriage, and also to take Antonio in his laboratory of fireworks.

Carmela even plans a love escape in order to put the family in front of the fait accompli, but she does not have the courage to go all the way. Eventually, the two young men return to the village and announce that they are getting married anyway, whatever the difficulties. For the time being, market sellers are starting to help them by giving them unlimited credit on their clothing. The film is considered the first representative of the strand of so-called pink neorealism: the setting is undoubtedly realistic, but on the contrary that in neo-realistic works, there is no drama, indeed the tones remain light and problems such as poverty and unemployment appear not to be too serious and easily solved. Sentimental love, which after various obstacles inevitably ends up being legitimized by marriage, prevails over any social issue, Carmela, lively and characterless but irreproachable from a moral point of view, seems to anticipate the characters of the Bread, Love and Fantasy Target, and the Joan of Poor but beautiful.