Acting
Valentina Cortese
IT, FR, EN, DE cinema · 91 credits
Born
1 January 1923
Died
10 July 2019 (aged 96)
Birthplace
Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Also known as Valentina Cortesa
Valentina Cortese (January 1, 1923 - July 10, 2019) was an Italian film actress. The Milan-born actress starred in The House on Telegraph Hill (1951) directed by Robert Wise, and costarring Richard Basehart and William Lundigan. Cortese, aged 28, married Basehart in 1951, and had one son with him before they divorced in 1960. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1975 for her performance in François Truffaut's Day for Night. Cortese appeared in Jules Dassin's Thieves' Highway (1949), Joseph L. Mankiewicz's The Barefoot Contessa (1954), Michelangelo Antonioni's Le Amiche (1955), Gérard Brach's The Boat on the Grass, Terry Gilliam's The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988), and in the Franco Zeffirelli projects such as the 1972 film Brother Sun, Sister Moon, his 1977 miniseries, Jesus of Nazareth and the 1993 film Sparrow.
Known for
Filmography
Diva!
as Self
Michelangelo Antonioni: The Eye That Changed Cinema
as Self (archive footage)
Sparrow
as Madre Superiora
La Classe américaine
as The Helicopter Man's Wife (archive footage) (uncredited)
Buster's Bedroom
as Serafina Tannenbaum
The Adventures of Baron Munchausen
as Queen Ariadne / Violet
Facciaffittasi
1988
Facciaffittasi
as Gina Grandi
Young Toscanini
as Comparsa (uncredited)
Blue Tango
as Rachele Cigno
Via Montenapoleone
as madre di Guido
La Ferdinanda. Sonate für eine Medici-Villa
as Caterina de Dominicis
When Time Ran Out...
as Rose Valdez
Ring of Darkness
as Elena Merrill
Tanto va la gatta al lardo...
as Wilma/Leonilde Bosco Casagrande
Widows' Nest
as Dolores
The Big Operator
as Witwe
Nick the Sting
as Regina
Son tornate a fiorire le rose
as Sabina Foschini
Kidnap Syndicate
as Grazia Filippini
Il cav. Costante Nicosia demoniaco, ovvero Dracula in Brianza
as Olghina Franchetti
Appassionata
as Elisa Rutelli
Amore mio non farmi male
as Sabina Foschini
The Kiss
as Elizabeth Blixen
Day for Night
as Séverine
Brother Sun, Sister Moon
as Pica Di Bernardone
The Assassination of Trotsky
as Natalia Trotsky
Chronicle of a Homicide
as Luisa Sola
The Boat on the Grass
as Catherine
The Iguana with the Tongue of Fire
as Madame Sobieski
First Love
as Mutter
Give Her the Moon
as Madeleine de Lépine
The Secret of Santa Vittoria
as Gabriella (uncredited)
Oh, Grandmother's Dead
as Ornella
The Legend of Lylah Clare
as Countess Bozo Bedoni
Listen, Let's Make Love
as Lallo's Mother
Black Sun
as Maria
Juliet of the Spirits
as Valentina
The Possessed
as Irma
The Visit
as Mathilda Miller
The Girl Who Knew Too Much
as Laura Craven-Torrani
Story of San Michele
as Eleonora Duse
Barabbas
as Julia
Square of Violence
as Erica Bernardi
Love and Troubles
as Marisa
The Rocket from Calabuch
as Eloísa, la maestra de escuela
Le Amiche
as Nene
Magic Fire
as Mathilde Wesendonk
Adriana Lecouvreur
as Adriana Lecouvreur
Il conte Aquila
as Teresa Casati
The Barefoot Contessa
as Eleanora Torlato-Favrini
Jailbirds
as Luprandi's wife
Angels of Darkness
as Vally
La passeggiata
as Lisa
Secret People
as Maria Brentano / Brent / Lena Collins
The House on Telegraph Hill
as Victoria Kowelska
Shadow of the Eagle
as Elizabeth, Princess Tarakanova
Thieves' Highway
as Rica
Malaya
as Luana
Black Magic
as Zoraida
The Glass Mountain
as Alida Morrosini
Les Misérables
as Fantine
L'ebreo errante
as Ester
Crossroads of Passion
as Maria Pilar
Il passatore
as Barbara
Rome: Free City
as La ragazza
No One Comes Back
as Valentina
Giorni felici
as Marianna
Quarta pagina
as Valentina
The Jester's Supper
as Lisabetta
Soltanto un bacio
1942
Soltanto un bacio
as Maria Renda / Luisa Renda
Il bravo di Venezia
as Alina
Primo amore
as Nerina Redi