Valerio Zurlini (19 March 1926 – 26 October 1982) was an Italian stage and film director and screenwriter. During his law studies in Rome , he started working in the theatre. In 1943, he joined the Italian resistance . Zurlini became a member of the Italian Communist Party . He filmed short documentaries in the immediate post-war period before he directed his first feature film in 1954, The Girls of San Frediano . In 1958, Zurlini won the Nastro d'Argento together with Leonardo Benvenuti , Piero De Bernardi and Alberto Lattuada for Best Script for Lattuada's Guendalina . Zurlini made his name as a director with his second feature film, Violent Summer (1959), starring Eleonora Rossi Drago and Jean Louis Trintignant . In 1961, Zurlini filmed Girl with a Suitcase , starring Claudia Cardinale , who became a film star in Italy, and Jacques Perrin , who would become Zurlini's favorite actor. His 1962 film Family Diary earned Zurlini the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival (it tied with Tarkovsky 's Ivan's Childhood ). Both The Girls of San Frediano and Family Diary were based on Vasco Pratolini 's work.
Read moreShow less
Biography from TMDB.
- March 19, 1926
- October 26, 1982 (aged 56)
- Bologna, Italy
- Director and writer
- 8 on MovieCove · 19 credits in all
What are Valerio Zurlini's films like?
Across their 8 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Bonds and Power.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 8
Light 1 · Serious 1 · Dark 6
Grounded 3 · Stylized 4 · Heightened 1
A split, not a type: Gentle 1 · Charged 3 · Intense 4
Steady 6 · Shifting 2 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 7 · Some laughs 1 · Funny 0
Slow burn 8 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0
Casual 4 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 0 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 7
A split, not a type: Resolved 4 · Open-ended 2 · Ambiguous 2
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet2
- Tragic5
- 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 Valerio Zurlini's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 2 of their 8 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service.
Subscription and free streaming for Valerio Zurlini'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
19 credits, 8 with a MovieCove page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.
Valerio Zurlini, peintre des sentiments (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2024)
The Gold Rimmed Glasses(1987)
Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films
Indian Summer(1972)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films
La promessa (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1970)
Midcredits score: 86th percentile of all films
How, When, and with Whom (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1969)
Black Jesus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1968)
The Camp Followers(1965)
Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films
Family Diary (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1962)
Girl with a Suitcase(1961)
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films
Violent Summer(1959)
Midcredits score: 91st percentile of all films
Guendalina(1957)
Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films
The Girls of San Frediano (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1955)
Serenata da un soldo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)
Soldati in città (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)
Mercato delle facce (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)
The Station (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1952)
Pugilatori (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1951)
Career shape
A full career of 17 titles from 1951 to 2024.
Biggest box office
Girl with a Suitcase (1961)
Highest rated
Girl with a Suitcase (1961)
Most popular right now
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (1970)
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 Valerio Zurlini's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 87th percentile, the median of all 8; across their 8 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 85th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up7
- 50th to 74th1
Shape of the crowd
None of their 8 titles divides audiences: 7 are Crowd Pleasers.
- Universally Loved1
- Crowd Pleaser7
Reviewers score the atmosphere 79/100 and the pacing 45/100 in their films, across 7 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.
Who does Valerio Zurlini work with?
People who share at least 2 of Valerio Zurlini's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Mario Nascimbene shares the most, 4.
Writers
- Enrico MedioliShared titles: The Gold Rimmed Glasses (1987), Indian Summer (1972), Girl with a Suitcase (1961)See all 3 shared titles with Enrico Medioli
- Leonardo BenvenutiShared titles: The Camp Followers (1965), Girl with a Suitcase (1961), Guendalina (1957)See all 3 shared titles with Leonardo Benvenuti
- Piero De BernardiShared titles: The Camp Followers (1965), Girl with a Suitcase (1961), Guendalina (1957)See all 3 shared titles with Piero De Bernardi
- Giorgio BassaniShared titles: The Gold Rimmed Glasses (1987), The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (1970)See all 2 shared titles with Giorgio Bassani
Actors
- Philippe NoiretShared titles: The Gold Rimmed Glasses (1987), The Desert of the Tartars (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Philippe Noiret
- Jacques PerrinShared titles: The Desert of the Tartars (1976), Girl with a Suitcase (1961)See all 2 shared titles with Jacques Perrin
- Jean-Louis TrintignantShared titles: The Desert of the Tartars (1976), Violent Summer (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Jean-Louis Trintignant
- Lea MassariShared titles: Indian Summer (1972), The Camp Followers (1965)See all 2 shared titles with Lea Massari
Composers and editors
- Mario NascimbeneShared titles: Indian Summer (1972), The Camp Followers (1965), Girl with a Suitcase (1961), Violent Summer (1959)See all 4 shared titles with Mario Nascimbene
- Ennio MorriconeShared titles: The Gold Rimmed Glasses (1987), The Desert of the Tartars (1976)See all 2 shared titles with Ennio Morricone
- Franco ArcalliShared titles: The Desert of the Tartars (1976), The Camp Followers (1965)See all 2 shared titles with Franco Arcalli
- Mario SerandreiShared titles: Girl with a Suitcase (1961), Violent Summer (1959)See all 2 shared titles with Mario Serandrei