DOWN THE ANCIENT STAIRS
synopsis
A mental hospital somewhere in Tuscany during the thirties. Far away from fascism, this closed world is rules over by Dr. Bonaccorsi, a passionate benevolent psychiatrist whose dream is to isolate the germ of madness. He is also a very active ladies'man and makes three women benefit from his sexual itch: Francesca the hospital manager's wife, Bianca, his devoted nurse and Carla, a nymphomaniac doctor's wife. His well-ordered universe starts being challenged with the coming of Anna, a trainee psychiatrist, who disapproves of his theory on the origin of madness. Worse, she resists his advances. As Bonaccorsi is more insecure than he looks, what will become of him?
| international title: | Down the Ancient Stairs | 
| original title: | Per le antiche scale | 
| country: | Italy, France | 
| year: | 1975 | 
| genre: | fiction | 
| directed by: | Mauro Bolognini | 
| film run: | 115' | 
| release date: | CH 09/08/1975, IT 06/11/1975, FR 11/1975, UK 08/1976, PT 13/06/1978, NL 25/01/1979 | 
| screenplay: | Bernardino Zapponi, Raffaele Andreassi, Tullio Pinelli, Marie Claire Solleville | 
| cast: | Marcello Mastroianni, Françoise Fabian, Marthe Keller, Maria Teresa Albani, Maria Michi, Silvano Tranquilli, Charles Fawcett, Enzo Robutti, Ferruccio De Ceresa, Lucía Bosé, Adriana Asti | 
| cinematography by: | Ennio Guarnieri | 
| film editing: | Nino Baragli | 
| art director: | Piero Tosi | 
| costumes designer: | Piero Tosi | 
| music: | Ennio Morricone | 
| producer: | Fulvio Lucisano | 


















