1860	(1933) Director: Alessandro Blasetti Duration: 72 Minutes

The movie deals with a Sicilian peasant's attempt to reach Garibaldi's headquarters in Northern Italy to petition the general to come to the aid of his Southern countrymen whose quest for freedom was being suppressed by the Swiss mercenaries sent to Sicily by the King of Naples.  Along the way, the Sicilian encounters a full spectrum of Italian regional types from all social strata and holding political opinions of every stripe.  These political opinions and the strong regional  interests are believed to be the cause of the poor state of affairs in the Italian peninsula and the presence of foreign and mercenary troops there. Italy cannot take her place among the other European nations as an equal until its national aspirations are achieved and all foreign troops vacated from Italian soil. A long scene on board a train forces many such folk into close proximity, revealing their sectionalism. Symbolically, when two such Italians leave their seat on the train to engage in a very lively discussion on their beliefs, they lose their seats to foreigners. The movie also reveals the  regional distrust and antagonism among the inhabitants of the peninsula. This uneasy coalition of people who barely speak the same language, of all walk of life, having the full spectrum of political and social views reminds the viewer of Italy's continuing fragility as a nation. After many  episodes, including one where the people encountered earlier on the train set aside their differences to join Garibaldi in his expedition to Sicily, 1860 resolves with an extended and exciting battle at Calatafimi which ends with the victory of Garibaldi. Italy will be united, but a panoramic survey of the battlefield reveals the cost in the bodies of dead soldiers both "garibaldini" and Southern Italian regulars. Much is to be done before Italy will be one nation!