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Benito Mussolini is the protagonist of the 1974 italian film Benito Mussolini ultimo atto (Benito Mussolini: Last Days).
He was played by the late Rod Steiger who played Jud Fry and Pontius Pilate (Jesus Christ Superstar).
Biography[]
In April 1945, Benito Mussolini presides over the collapsing Italian Social Republic, a puppet state supported by Nazi Germany. As Allied forces advance into Northern Italy and the partisan resistance grows stronger, Mussolini faces mounting pressure. When Cardinal Ildefonso Schuster of Milan suggests that he surrender to the CLN (National Liberation Committee of Northern Italy), Mussolini refuses, still hoping to reach an agreement with the Anglo-Americans.
Clinging to the illusion of diplomatic salvation, he decides to flee toward the Swiss border. He is accompanied by his devoted mistress, Claretta Petacci, and several high-ranking fascist officials who also seek to avoid capture by the partisans and hope for leniency from the Allies. Under the protection of a German military column composed of Wehrmacht soldiers and SS troops, Mussolini travels northward. However, at a partisan roadblock, an agreement between German authorities and the CLN leads to the surrender of the Italian fascists, while the Germans are allowed to proceed. Realizing his vulnerability, Mussolini disguises himself as a German soldier, hiding among troops on a military truck.
Despite this, at a second checkpoint in Dongo, on the shores of Lake Como, Mussolini is recognized and arrested along with Petacci. They are moved from one makeshift prison to another, eventually being held in a rural farmhouse as their fate is debated.
The CLN ultimately decides that Mussolini must be executed. Colonel Walter Audisio, known by his nom de guerre "Valerio," is chosen to carry out the sentence. On the morning of April 28, 1945, Mussolini and Petacci are taken to Giulino di Mezzegra. There, in front of Villa Belmonte, they are executed by gunfire. As the shots are fired, Claretta throws herself between the bullets and Mussolini in a final act of devotion. Both die on the spot, marking the definitive end of fascist rule in Italy.
Trivia[]
- During the escape Mussolini betrayed his last loyal fascist soldier and right hand man to follow Fritz Birzer and the Nazis escape.
- Mussolini body was esposed alongside his lover and other fascists, like Francesco Maria Barracu.