The Leopard
Making its long-awaited U.S. home video debut, Luchino Visconti’s The Leopard (Il Gattopardo) is an epic on the grandest possible scale. The film recreates, with nostalgia, drama, and opulence, the tumultuous years of Italy's Risorgimento—when the aristocracy lost its grip and the middle classes rose and formed a unified, democratic Italy. Burt Lancaster stars as the aging prince watching his culture and fortune wane in the face of a new generation, represented by his upstart nephew (Alain Delon) and his beautiful fiancée (Claudia Cardinale). Awarded the Palme d’Or at the 1963 Cannes Film Festival, The Leopard translates Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa's novel, and the history it recounts, into a truly cinematic masterpiece. The Criterion Collection is proud to present the film in two distinct versions: Visconti’s original Italian version, and the alternate English-language version released in America in a newly restored special edition.
TWO-BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
- New high-definition digital transfer, supervised by director of photography Giuseppe Rotunno and presented in the original Super Technirama aspect ratio of 2.21:1, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
- The 161-minute American release, with English-language dialogue, including Burt Lancaster’s own voice
- Audio commentary by film scholar Peter Cowie
- A Dying Breed: The Making of The Leopard, an hour-long documentary featuring interviews with Claudia Cardinale, screenwriter Suso Ceccho D’Amico, Rotunno, filmmaker Sydney Pollack, and many others
- Video interview with producer Goffredo Lombardo
- Video interview with professor Millicent Marcus on the history behind The Leopard
- Original theatrical trailers and newsreels
- Stills gallery of rare behind-the-scenes production photos
- PLUS: An essay by author and film historian Michael Wood
New cover by Lucien S. Y. Yang
TWO-BLU-RAY SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
- New high-definition digital transfer, supervised by director of photography Giuseppe Rotunno and presented in the original Super Technirama aspect ratio of 2.21:1, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack
- The 161-minute American release, with English-language dialogue, including Burt Lancaster’s own voice
- Audio commentary by film scholar Peter Cowie
- A Dying Breed: The Making of The Leopard, an hour-long documentary featuring interviews with Claudia Cardinale, screenwriter Suso Ceccho D’Amico, Rotunno, filmmaker Sydney Pollack, and many others
- Video interview with producer Goffredo Lombardo
- Video interview with professor Millicent Marcus on the history behind The Leopard
- Original theatrical trailers and newsreels
- Stills gallery of rare behind-the-scenes production photos
- PLUS: An essay by author and film historian Michael Wood
New cover by Lucien S. Y. Yang
Cast
- Burt Lancaster
- Don Fabrizio Corbera, Prince of Salina
- Claudia Cardinale
- Angelica Sedàra
- Alain Delon
- Tancredi Falconeri
- Paolo Stoppa
- Don Calógero Sedàra
- Rina Morelli
- Maria Stella Corbera, Princess of Salina
- Romolo Valli
- Father Pirrone
- Mario Girotti
- Count Cavriaghi
- Pierre Clémenti
- Francesco Paolo Corbera
- Lucilla Morlacchi
- Concetta Corbera
- Leslie French
- Cavaliere Chevelley
- Serge Reggiani
- Don Ciccio Tumeo
Credits
- Director
- Luchino Visconti
- Screenplay
- Suso Cecchi D’Amico
- Screenplay
- Enrico Medioli
- Screenplay
- Pasquale Festa Campanile
- Screenplay
- Massimo Franciosa
- Screenplay
- Luchino Visconti
- From the novel by
- Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
- Director of photography
- Giuseppe Rotunno
- Editing
- Mario Serandrei
- Music
- Nino Rota
- Art direction
- Mario Garbuglia
- Costumes
- Piero Tosi
Edition introduction to The Leopard
