There was a time, between the late 1950s and the early 1960s, when Italian cinema believed it could fit the entire world onto the screen.

Don't just talk about it show it through its nights, its excesses, its promises.

n 1959, Alessandro Blasetti directed Europe by Night, a film that appears to be a documentary but is, in fact, something else entirely: a perspective seduced by spectacle rather than concerned with reality.

In Europe at Night, the great capitals of Paris, Vienna, London and Madrid become the stage.

The film brings together: variety acts, evening performances, bodies, lights, music.

It is not the 'real' world, but the world that presents itself to the eye.

It is an instant success. And, as is often the case in cinema, success breeds imitation.

Within a few years, a new trend took shape: the so-called mondo movie.

Three of the most famous titles: Mondo cane, Addio zio Tom, Africa addio

Films that claim to show the world ‘as it is’, but in reality select the most striking elements: the unusual, the disturbing, the extreme.

Change: From the Everyday to the Extraordinary

At the start, there is still a trace of curiosity. Then something changes.

The narrative shifts towards: heightened emphasis on exotic rituals, increasingly frequent nude scenes, images of violence, and deliberately shocking episodes.

The world is no longer observed: it is selected for its impact. Films such as Africa ama amplify this trend, presenting raw and controversial images that divide audiences and critics.

The role of the spectator

The success of films like Mondo Cane reveals something more profound.

It's not just cinema that's changing. It's the viewer's perspective.

We move from curiosity to the pursuit of shock. From observation to a fascination with the extreme.

The world becomes a spectacle.

Posters: Promising the World

The film posters for these films also reflect this evolution.

World cinema posters: they emphasise the exotic, suggest transgression, and promise ‘forbidden’ images.

They don't describe the film: they amplify it. In this sense, they are an integral part of the phenomenon.

Today, the mondo movies represent a controversial but pivotal chapter in post-war cinema. And their posters remain as testimonies of an era.

On Movie.it, these materials enable us to take a close look at the moment when cinema stopped depicting the world… and started chasing it.

We would like to thank Sebastiano Cannavò for his invaluable collaboration.