La grande guerra
The Great War - Movie Quotes
Memorable Quotes
Mi te disi propi un bel nient! Hai capito? Faccia de merda!
— Giovanni Busacca
Context:
Spoken to the Austrian officer who has just mocked Italians. Giovanni has decided not to reveal the location of a strategic bridge, knowing it will lead to his immediate execution.
Meaning:
"I'm telling you bugger all! Got it? Shitface!" This is the climactic line of the film, where Giovanni, a lifelong coward, finds the courage to defy his captor. It's a raw, vulgar assertion of dignity, not in the name of a flag, but in response to a personal insult. It marks the completion of his tragic transformation into an unlikely hero.
Io non so niente! Se lo sapessi, ve lo direi! Io sono un vigliacco, lo sanno tutti!
— Oreste Jacovacci
Context:
Shouted to the Austrian firing squad moments after they have executed Giovanni. Overcome with terror, Oreste tries to save himself by reaffirming his identity as a coward, but he is shot anyway.
Meaning:
"I don't know anything! If I knew, I'd tell you! I'm a coward, everyone knows it!" This is Oreste's final, desperate plea. It tragically and ironically underscores the film's central theme. He dies not because he chose heroism, but because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, his cowardice failing to save him in the end. He becomes a hero against his will.
L'italiano in fanteria, il romano in fureria.
— Giovanni Busacca
Context:
Said by Giovanni when he first meets Oreste at the enlistment office, sizing him up as a classic Roman shirker who has found a comfortable desk job while others are sent to fight.
Meaning:
"The Italian in the infantry, the Roman in the orderly room." A cynical proverb used by Giovanni, reflecting regional stereotypes. It highlights the internal divisions and prejudices within Italy at the time and establishes the initial antagonistic dynamic between the Milanese Giovanni and the Roman Oreste.
E pensare che anche stavolta quei due lavativi se la sono scampata!
— The Italian Captain
Context:
Spoken by the Italian captain after his troops have retaken the outpost where Giovanni and Oreste were executed. He sees they are missing and assumes the worst of them, as usual, highlighting the tragic anonymity of their sacrifice.
Meaning:
"And to think that once again those two slackers got away!" This is the film's devastatingly ironic final line. The captain, unaware of their sacrifice, assumes Giovanni and Oreste have simply deserted as they always threatened to. It solidifies their status as unsung heroes whose ultimate act of bravery will never be known, perfectly encapsulating the film's tragic and anti-glorious vision of war.