From L'Isola To L'Avventura

Abstract

This article examines the collaboration of the Ferrara born writer and director Michelangelo Antonioni with the Santarcangelo born poet and screenwriter Tonino Guerra, a professional partnership that spanned a 40 year period and 10 feature fims. The analysis focusses on L’avventura (1960), which is seen to have evolved from an original treatment by Antonioni, through diverse drafts of the screenplay by Antonioni, Tonino Guerra and Elio Bartolini. It traces the development of the script through the original treatment, a pre-screenplay and the various drafts of the full screenplay, focussing on individual sequences. The use of ellipsis and radical new narrative forms, a key characteristic of Antonioni’s modernistic cinema and his work with Guerra, is investigated. Looking at the drafting of excised and revised scenes, the depth and breadth of the filmmaking technique is revealed, with focus on the evolving structural architecture of the screenplay. As the story moves to the mainland of Sicily, the physical geography of a peripatetic pursuit across the island is shown to map and mirror the emotional and existential journey of the protagonists. The analysis presents an essential insight into the scriptwriting collaboration between a noted writer and a great Italian !lm auteur. It reveals a detailed picture of the script development of an acknowledged masterpiece of modernist cinema.