Wild is the Wind is a 1957 American drama film directed by George Cukor and starring Anna Magnani, Anthony Quinn, and Anthony Franciosa. It tells the story of an American rancher who, after his wife dies, goes to Italy to marry her sister, but finds that she falls in love with his young ranch hand.
The screenplay was adapted by Arnold Schulman from the 1947 Italian film Fury, which was in turn loosely based on Giovanni Verga's novellaLa Lupa. The title song, "Wild Is the Wind", was performed by Johnny Mathis.
The Italian title was 'Selvaggio è il vento', literal translation of the original English.
Plot
Gino (Anthony Quinn) is a sheepherder in Nevada who travels to Italy to marry Gioia (Anna Magnani), the sister of his wife, who died a number of years previously.
He brings her back to his ranch, but struggles with the memory of his dead wife, even calling Gioia by his last wife's name. With Gino feeling disappointed with her, Gioia feels neglected and resentful that she is constantly being compared with her late sister and found wanting.
She turns outside of her marriage to fulfill her needs and has an affair with Bene (Anthony Franciosa), a ranch hand whom Gino raised from boyhood and considers as almost a son.
Only then does Gino realize how much he needs Gioia; he pleads with her to stay at the ranch instead of returning to Italy.
The Misfits (1961 film), for a comparison of exactly the same theme and scene of lassoing wild Reno horses from a truck, three years later.
References
^"Top Grossers of 1958". Variety. 7 January 1959. p. 48. Please note figures are for US and Canada only and are domestic rentals accruing to distributors as opposed to theatre gross
