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Liliana Cavani

Liliana Cavani

Director, writer and actor · Born January 12, 1933 (93) · Carpi, Modena, Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Liliana Cavani (born 12 January 1933) is an Italian film director and screenwriter. Cavani became internationally known after the success of her 1974 feature film Il portiere di notte (The Night Porter). Her films have historical concerns. In addition to feature films and documentaries, she has also directed opera. Description above from the Wikipedia article Liliana Cavani, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
January 12, 1933 (93)
From
Carpi, Modena, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
Works as
Director, writer and actor
Titles
6 on MovieCove · 45 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Official site (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 38 days to Oct 27Down 23% in 30 days

What are Liliana Cavani's films like?

Across their 7 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Self.

Genres

Drama3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 67th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Biography2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 55th percentile
: browse their Biography movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Survival
26%
Self
18%
Morality
17%
Bonds
15%
Society
11%
Ideas
8%
Power
5%
Romantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 7 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Dark: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their dark movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

Light 1 · Serious 0 · Dark 6

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 3 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 1

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 1 · Charged 1 · Intense 5

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

A split, not a type: Steady 3 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 2

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 6 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 3 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 0 · Engaged 5 · Full focus 2

Heavy: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their heavy movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

Easy watch 1 · Affecting 0 · Heavy 6

Open-ended: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their open-ended movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 2 · Open-ended 3 · Ambiguous 2

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Melancholic
6
Tense
5
Dread
3
Contemplative
2
Absurd
2
Other
1

How their films linger

Haunting3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteDevastating2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteUnsettling3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Bittersweet2
  • Tragic4
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Liliana Cavani's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 4 of their 6 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (2).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Liliana Cavani's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

45 credits, 6 with a MovieCove page; 14 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Oltre il tempo, l'amore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)

    Actor

  • The Order of Time (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2023)

    Director · Writer

  • A Man Falling (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2021)

    Actor

  • Partigiane 2.0 - La libertà ha sempre vent'anni (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2020)

    as Sè stessa

  • Francesco (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

  • Francesco (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2014)

    Show 2 episodes · Director · Screenplay · Story

  • Clarisse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Director · Producer

  • Mai per amore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Show 4 episodes · Director

  • Never for Love (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)

    Show 1 episode · Director · Creator

  • Einstein (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)

    Show 2 episodes · Director · Writer

  • Verdi: La Traviata (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2007)

    Director

  • Macbeth (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2006)

    Director

  • De Gasperi: The Man of Hope (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2005)

    Show 2 episodes · Director · Co-Writer

  • Ripley's Game(2002)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Verdi, Un Ballo in Maschera - Salvatore Licitra, Maria Guleghina, Riccardo Muti, Teatro alla Scala (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2001)

    Director

  • Manon Lescaut (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1998)

    Director

  • Cavalleria rusticana (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1997)

    Director

  • Where Are You? I’m Here (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1993)

    Director · Writer

  • Francesco(1989)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

    Midcredits score: 54th percentile of all films

  • The Berlin Affair(1985)

    Director · Writer

    Midcredits score: 27th percentile of all films

  • Beyond the Door (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1982)

    Director · Screenplay

  • The Skin(1981)

    Director · Screenplay

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • Beyond Good and Evil(1977)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all films

  • Ulla's Fete (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    Actor

  • Milarepa (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1974)

    Director · Screenplay

  • The Night Porter(1974)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • The Guest (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1971)

    Director · Writer

  • The Year of the Cannibals (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    Director · Writer

  • Intolerance: il caso Liuzzo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)

    Writer

  • Galileo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)

    Director · Screenplay · Story

  • Francis of Assisi (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1966)

    Director · Screenplay

  • Il giorno della pace (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Director

  • Women of the Resistance (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Director

  • Gesù mio fratello (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Director

  • Philippe Pétain: Processo a Vichy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1965)

    Director

  • La casa in Italia (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director

  • Età di Stalin (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1964)

    Director

  • La battaglia (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director · Writer

  • La storia del Terzo Reich (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)

    Director

  • Assalto al consumatore (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director

  • Gente di teatro (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director

  • Incontro di notte (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director · Writer

  • L'uomo della burocrazia (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director

  • La vita militare (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1961)

    Director

  • Che fine hanno fatto i sogni? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)

    Actor

Career shape

A full career of 45 titles, 44 of them dated from 1961 to 2024.

Biggest box office

Ripley's Game (2002)

$6.2M worldwide

Highest rated

The Night Porter (1974)

Midcredits 68th

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting5 of 45: 5 only acting, 0 with another roleDirecting39 of 45: 17 only directing, 22 with another role · typical Midcredits score61stWriting21 of 45: 1 only writing, 20 with another role · typical Midcredits score61stProducing1 of 45: 0 only producing, 1 with another roleOther crew1 of 45: 0 only other crew, 1 with another role

45 titles, 22 with more than one role — directing and writing overlap on 20 of them.

By decade

1960s17 · crew1970s5 · 1 acting · 4 crew1980s4 · crew1990s3 · crew2000s6 · crew2010s5 · crew2020s4 · 3 acting · 1 crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Liliana Cavani's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 61st percentile, the median of all 6; across their 7 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 65th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

65thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Approval · how many liked their films

62ndpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Reach · how many have seen their films

54thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 7

Midcredits score across 6 titles, by percentile

  • 50th to 74th5
  • 25th to 49th1

Shape of the crowd

4 of their 6 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Crowd Pleaser4
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · director, writer

Beyond Good and Evil (1977)

61st percentile spread · 19% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · director, writer

The Night Porter (1974)

Midcredits 68th · 61% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 73/100 and the pacing 42/100 in their films, across 6 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Liliana Cavani's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 3 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Sex & Nudity3 titlesmedian 56 · moderateMedian of all films: 32

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Liliana Cavani work with?

People who share at least 2 of Liliana Cavani's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Hanns Zischler shares the most, 3.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers