The Year Long Road

1958 2h 42m HR

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 6

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Set in an unspecified country and an unspecified time period, the film follows a communist intelectual who, after travelling the world for many decades, decides to return and settle down to the place he grew up in, a small coastal village seemingly forgotten by time itself. With him, he brings news of the dawn of a new world on the horizon, with which he wishes to connect with through constructing a modern highway. This news is welcomed in the village, however, the construction of the road begins to bring out violent conflicts, reveals forbidden romances and ends up regressing the community even further into the darkness from which it wanted to escape.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Silvana Pampanini
Giuseppina Pancrazi (Katarina)
Eleonora Rossi Drago
Susanna
Massimo Girotti
Chiacchiera (Naklapalo)
Bert Sotlar
Guglielmo Cosma (Emil Kozma)
Ivica Pajer
Lorenco
Milivoje Živanović
Učitelj
Gordana Miletić
Angela
Nikša Stefanini
David

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Giuseppe De Santis
Writers: Tonino Guerra, Giuseppe De Santis, Maurizio Ferrara
Languages: Croatian
Countries: Italy, Yugoslavia

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Clocks in at 162 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

68 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Italy, Yugoslavia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Giuseppe De Santis, shot by Marco Scarpelli. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Vladimir Kraus-Rajterić. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Boris Tešija shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Silvana Pampanini and Eleonora Rossi Drago and Massimo Girotti carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0052250 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Giuseppe De Santis directs. Marco Scarpelli behind the camera. Vladimir Kraus-Rajterić scores. Boris Tešija cuts. A long sit — settle in. Produced in Italy, Yugoslavia. Dialogue in Croatian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Clocks in at 162 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.
268 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3International production across 2 countries: Italy, Yugoslavia.
4Directed by Giuseppe De Santis, shot by Marco Scarpelli. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Vladimir Kraus-Rajterić. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Boris Tešija shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Silvana Pampanini and Eleonora Rossi Drago and Massimo Girotti carry the top of the cast.
8IMDB entry: tt0052250 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 6 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.