“Visconti’s exquisite mise-en-scene never fails to suggest living, breathing worlds; and his fluid camerawork creates the unique, sweet-and-sour flavor of nostalgia seen at an impossible distance.”
—Cine-File

“A magnificent film, munificently outfitted and splendidly acted by a large cast dominated by Burt Lancaster’s standout stint in the title role.”
—Variety

“The film aches with regret over a crumbling empire, but its feelings are complicated by the wise prince, who recognizes his place on the wrong side of history.”
—AV Club

In this Palme d’Or winner, praised by Martin Scorsese as one of the greatest films ever made, Burt Lancaster gives a powerful performance as an aging aristocrat struggling to preserve his family amid the tumultuous social upheavals of 1860s Sicily. This program is made possible in part by a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.