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{{italic title}}{{Infobox film
| name = The Gates of Italy
| image = Gates of Italy.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Title Frame
| director =
| writer = {{Plainlist|
* [[Stuart Legg]]
* [[Tom Daly (filmmaker)|Tom Daly]]
}}
| producer = {{Plainlist|
* Stuart Legg
* Tom Daly
}}
| starring =
| narrator = [[Lorne Greene]]
| cinematography =
| editing = {{Plainlist|
* Stuart Legg
* Tom Daly
}}
| music = [[Lucio Agostini]]
| studio = [[National Film Board of Canada]]
| distributor = {{Plainlist|
* National Film Board of Canada
* [[United Artists]]
* [[Columbia Pictures]] of Canada
}}
| released = {{Film date|1943}}
| runtime = 21 minutes
| country = Canada
| language = English
| budget =
| gross =
}}

'''''The Gates of Italy''''' is a 21-minute 1943 Canadian [[documentary film]], made by the [[National Film Board of Canada]] as part of both the [[World War II|wartime]] ''[[Canada Carries On]]'' and ''[[The World in Action]]'' series. The film was produced by [[Stuart Legg]] and [[Tom Daly (filmmaker)|Tom Daly]].<ref>Lerner 1987, p. 75.</ref> ''The Gates of Italy'' describes the last days of [[Benito Mussolini]]'s rule over Italy in 1943 during the [[World War II|Second World War]].<ref>Khouri 2007, pp. 132–133.</ref>{{TOC limit|limit=2}}

==Synopsis==
In 1943, [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] forces are being assembled for an assault on [[Axis powers|Axis]]-held Italy. This military expedition marks the end of a troubled era for Italy during the 20th Century. Despite its origins as an early civilization and nearly 3,000 years of advances in arts and culture, Italians have faced an uncertain future.

During the turn-of-the-century, impoverished Italians left their homeland to settle in the United States and Canada, making their mark in many ways, including as scientists, artists and sports figures. In Italy, after the [[World War I|First World War]], chaotic economies led to the rise of fascism. The emergence of Benito Mussolini as the new political and military dictator thrust Italy into a series of foreign entanglements, in an attempt to reinvigorate the nation.

After invasion and conquest of [[Ethiopia]], Mussolini aligned with [[Adolf Hitler]] in a campaign of aggression in the [[Mediterranean and Middle East theatre of World War II|Mediterranean]] and [[North African Campaign|North Africa]] during the Second World War.

By 1943, Italian defeats in Africa with the resulting massive numbers of captured troops by Allied forces, have been characterized as the "African disease". Naval and aerial armadas massing for an attack on Italy, mean the end for Mussolini's deluded dreams of a new Italian empire.

==Cast==
{{div col}}
* [[Benito Mussolini]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Bruno Mussolini]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Rachele Mussolini]] as Herself (archival footage)
* [[Pope Pius XII]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Victor Emmanuel III of Italy|Victor Emmanuel III]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Adolf Hitler]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Joseph Goebbels]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Galeazzo Ciano]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[General]] [[Pietro Badoglio]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Joe DiMaggio]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Tony Canzoneri]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Arturo Toscanini]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Joachim von Ribbentrop]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Governor General]] [[Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone|arl of Athlone]] as Himself (archival footage)
* [[Calvin Coolidge]] as Himself (archival footage)
{{Div col end}}

==Production==
''The Gates of Italy'' was the part of the wartime ''Canada Carries On'' and ''The World in Action'' [[propaganda film|propaganda]] [[short film]] series, produced with financial backing from the [[Wartime Information Board]] for the Director of Public Information, Herbert Lash.<ref name="Tribune">[https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/37352863/ "Recognize leadership of Winnipeg women."]''The Winnipeg Tribune'', April 18, 1941. Retrieved: March 14, 2016.</ref><ref>Aitken 2013, p. 880.</ref>

Typical of the NFB's series of morale-boosting films, ''The Gates of Italy'' used the format of a [[compilation documentary]], relying heavily on [[newsreel]] material, including "enemy" footage, in order to provide the background to the dialogue.{{#tag:ref|Enemy footage was provided care of the Alien Property Custodian.<ref name="CFE">Morris, Peter. [http://www.filmreferencelibrary.ca/index.asp?layid=44&csid1=615&navid=66 "Film Reference Library: Canada Carries On."]{{Dead link|date=June 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=no }} ''Canadian Film Encyclopedia''. Retrieved: March 14, 2016.</ref>|group=Note}}.<ref name="CFE"/>

The deep baritone voice of stage actor [[Lorne Greene]] was featured in the narration of ''The Gates of Italy''. Greene, known for his work on both radio broadcasts as a news announcer at ''[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]]'' as well as narrating many of the ''Canada Carries On'' series.<ref>Bennett 2004, p. 254.</ref> His sonorous recitation led to his nickname, "The Voice of Canada", and to some observers, the "voice-of-God".<ref name="Rist">Rist 2001, p. 84.</ref> When reading grim battle statistics or narrating a particularly serious topic, he was known as "The Voice of Doom".<ref>[https://tkmorin.wordpress.com/2013/01/16/bonanzas-canadian-lorne-greene/ "Bonanza's Canadian Lorne Greene."] ''Bite Size Canada''. Retrieved: March 12, 2016.</ref>

==Reception==
In early 1942, National Film Board of Canada head [[John Grierson]] through his [[Cinema of the United States|Hollywood]] contacts, found a new outlet for documentaries, especially the recently launched war-themed ''The World in Action'' series. After the success of selling ''[[Warclouds in the Pacific]]'', the National Film Board of Canada was able to make a further arrangement with [[United Artists]] for additional titles to be distributed in the United States.<ref name="Ellis">Ellis and McLane 2005, p. 122.</ref><ref>Cox, Kierwan. [http://cinemacanada.athabascau.ca/index.php/cinema/article/viewFile/1832/1888 "The Grierson Files."] ''Cinema Canada'' Number 56, June/July 1979. Retrieved: March 14, 2016.</ref> With distribution in Canada and Great Britain, he now added the United States market.<ref name="Ohayon 1">Ohayon, Albert. [http://blog.nfb.ca/blog/2009/09/30/propaganda-cinema-the-world-in-action/ "Propaganda Cinema at the NFB – The World in Action."] ''National Film Board of Canada'', September 30, 2009. Retrieved: March 14, 2016.</ref>

''The Gates of Italy'' was produced in 35 mm for the theatrical market. Each film in both ''The World in Action'' and ''Canada Carries On'' series was shown over a six-month period as part of the shorts or newsreel segments in approximately 800 theatres across Canada. The National Film Board of Canada had an arrangement with [[Famous Players theatres]] to ensure that Canadians from coast-to-coast could see them, with further distribution by [[Columbia Pictures]].<ref name="Ellis"/> After the six-month theatrical tour ended, individual films were made available on 16 mm to schools, libraries, churches and factories, extending the life of these films for another year or two. They were also made available to film libraries operated by university and provincial authorities. A total of 199 films were produced before the series was canceled in 1959.<ref name="Ohayon 1"/>

==References==

===Notes===
{{Reflist|group=Note}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Bibliography===
{{Refbegin}}
* Aitken, Iann. ''The Concise Routledge Encyclopedia of the Documentary Film''. London: Routedge, 2013. {{ISBN|978-0-4155-9642-8}}.
* Bennett, Linda Greene. ''My Father's Voice: The Biography of Lorne Greene''. Bloomington, Indiana: iUniverse, Inc., 2004. {{ISBN|978-0-595-33283-0}}.
* Ellis, Jack C. and Betsy A. McLane. ''New History of Documentary Film''. London: Continuum International Publishing Group, 2005. {{ISBN|0-8264-1750-7}}.
* Khouri, Malek. ''Filming Politics: Communism and the Portrayal of the Working Class at the National Film Board of Canada, 1939-46.'' Calgary, Alberta, Canada: University of Calgary Press, 2007. {{ISBN|978-1-55238-199-1}}.
* Lerner, Loren. ''Canadian Film and Video: A Bibliography and Guide to the Literature''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1997. {{ISBN|978-0-8020-2988-1}}.
* Rist, Peter. ''Guide to the Cinema(s) of Canada''. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-3132-9931-5}}.
{{Refend}}

==External links==
* [http://onf-nfb.gc.ca/en/our-collection/?idfilm=16968 ''The Gates of Italy'' at the National Film Board of Canada Collections page]
* [https://www.nfb.ca/film/gates_of_italy Watch ''The Gates of Italy'' at nfb.ca]
* {{IMDb title|0223347}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gates of Italy, The}}
[[Category:1943 films]]
[[Category:Canadian black-and-white films]]
[[Category:Canadian short documentary films]]
[[Category:Quebec films]]
[[Category:English-language films]]
[[Category:National Film Board of Canada documentaries]]
[[Category:1943 documentary films]]
[[Category:Black-and-white documentary films]]
[[Category:Films produced by Stuart Legg]]
[[Category:Documentary films about Italy]]
[[Category:Films produced by Tom Daly]]
[[Category:Canada Carries On]]
[[Category:The World in Action]]
[[Category:National Film Board of Canada short films]]
[[Category:Columbia Pictures short films]]
[[Category:Canadian films]]
[[Category:1940s short documentary films]]

Moving Image:The Gates of Italy - Revision history

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