The Wide Blue Road (1959)

The remarkable debut feature directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, famed for THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS and BURN!, in a beautiful, newly restored version thanks to the efforts of Jonathan Demme, Dustin Hoffman and Milestone Film. Set in a fishing village off Italy's Dalmatian coast, under a brilliant, turquoise sky, Yves Montand plays Squarcio, a rogue fisherman who manages to feed his family (his wife played by the exquisite Alida Valli) by tossing bombs into the water to kill the maximum number of fish. When a new chief of police puts Squarcio's illegal and dangerous exploits under closer scrutiny, his livelihood is threatened. Montand's unforgettable, complex character is part working-class hero, part macho-cowboy, part 1950's sex symbol at sea.