Lea Massari, Italian Cinema’s Anti-Diva, Dies at 91

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The well-known Italian actress Lea Massari, who gained prominence in European cinema with her roles in films such as Michelangelo Antonioni’s “L’Avventura” (1960), Dino Risi’s “A Difficult Life” (1961), and Louis Malle’s “Murmur of the Heart” (1971), has passed away at the age of 91.

For several decades, Massari’s acting career encompassed films, television, and stage performances. She shared the screen with notable figures such as Alain Delon, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Michel Piccoli, and Omar Sharif. Despite her popularity among critics and audiences, she preferred to avoid the limelight. Following her retirement from acting over 30 years ago, she seldom made public appearances.

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Massari had a long and varied career in film, television, and theater that lasted for several decades. She acted alongside stars like Alain Delon, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Michel Piccoli, and Omar Sharif. Although she was well-liked by both critics and the public, she generally preferred to stay out of the limelight. After retiring from acting more than 30 years ago, she rarely made herself known in public.

Massari died at her home in Rome on Monday, Italian media reported.

Anna Maria Massatani was born on June 30, 1933. Later, she adopted the stage name Lea as a tribute to her fiancé Leo, who sadly passed away in an accident before their wedding. Lea’s early years were spent traveling across Europe due to her father’s engineering career, which took them to places like Spain, France, and Switzerland. Lea studied architecture, using modeling work to make ends meet, until she entered the film world through Piero Gherardi, a renowned costume designer (known for films like “La Dolce Vita” and “8 1/2”), who was a family friend.

Her first role appeared in Mario Monicelli’s film “Forbidden” (1955), where she portrayed a young woman residing in a rough Sardinian village, endeavoring to mediate peace between feuding clans alongside the local priest (Mel Ferrer). Notoriety followed with her subsequent part in Renato Castellani’s “Dreams in a Drawer “(1957), where she played an ambitious student and newlywed whose academic and personal aspirations were disrupted upon discovering she was pregnant.

In my acting journey, some unforgettable roles I’ve embodied include Anna, the enigmatic young woman who vanishes mysteriously during a boat trip in Michelangelo Antonioni’s groundbreaking masterpiece, L’Avventura (1960); Monica, the complicated partner to a tormented teacher (Alain Delon) who finds herself entangled with one of his students, in Valerio Zurlini’s Indian Summer (1972); and Clara, a mother with an awkward bond with her teenage son, in Louis Malle’s critically acclaimed dramedy, Murmur of the Heart (1971).

Monicelli gave a realistic portrayal as Elena, the spouse of an anti-Fascist intellectual (portrayed by Alberto Sordi) in Dino Risi’s postwar masterpiece “A Difficult Life” (1961), a role that garnered her a special David di Donatello award, Italy’s version of the Oscars. In later stages of her career, she reprised the role of a political dissident’s wife, appearing in Francesco Rosi’s “Christ Stopped at Eboli” (1978), a biopic on Carlo Levi who was exiled by Mussolini to a secluded village in Southern Italy. In lesser films, Monicelli lent an air of elegance, as demonstrated in Sergio Leone’s debut, the insignificant ancient-world epic “The Colossus of Rhodes” (1961).

Outside of Italy, Massatani was widely admired by European filmmakers, often sharing the screen with Michel Piccoli and Romy Schneider as part of a sorrowful love triangle in Claude Sautet’s “The Things of Life” (1970); and he also played a significant role in Chantal Akerman’s “Meetings with Anna” (1978).

She initially auditioned to play the lead female character in Federico Fellini’s movie “8 1/2”, but later remembered by Massatani, her friend Piero Gherardi who allegedly favored Anouk Aimée for the part, ended up dressing her oddly which potentially harmed her chances of getting the role.

In 1963, Massatani wed Carlo Bianchini, a once-prominent Alitalia pilot. They chose not to have children together and parted ways in 2004. Post her retirement from acting and performing, Massatani became deeply committed to animal welfare and an outspoken opponent of hunting activities.

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2025-06-25 19:54