L’Eclisse

Vittoria ends her relationship with Riccardo in his apartment in the EUR district of Rome after a long night of conversation. Riccardo pleads with her to stay, but she insists she no longer loves him and prepares to leave. The emotional moment marks a turning point as she steps out into the morning.

Vittoria wanders the deserted streets, and Riccardo catches up, choosing to accompany her. They walk through a wooded area toward her apartment building. At the building, they exchange a final, quiet goodbye.

Vittoria visits her mother at the frantic Rome Stock Exchange, where traders panic during a market moment. A young stockbroker named Piero overhears an inside tip, buys the stock, and later sells it for a sizable profit. He introduces himself to Vittoria, revealing he is her mother's broker.

Outside the Stock Exchange, Vittoria tries to tell her mother about the breakup, but her mother is absorbed with the profits she has earned. The personal news takes a backseat to financial excitement. The scene highlights the tension between Vittoria's private life and her mother's public success.

That evening, Vittoria's neighbor Anita visits and is joined by Marta, who invites them to her apartment. Marta's racist attitudes surface as she refers to Africans as 'monkeys' and fears the white minority. In a provocative moment, Vittoria dons blackface and imitates an African tribal dance, which Marta discourages.

When Marta's dog Zeus escapes, the women chase after him, providing a brief distraction from tensions. Riccardo calls for Vittoria outside her apartment, but she hides and does not answer. The moment underscores Vittoria's unsettled state as she navigates love and social tensions.

The next day, Vittoria accompanies Anita and her husband on a trip to Verona, offering a change of scenery from Rome's tensions. The outing provides a temporary escape and a contrast to Vittoria's evolving relationship with Piero.

Back in Rome, Piero continues trading, while Vittoria learns that her mother has lost about 10 million lire following a stock market crash. The financial disaster compounds Vittoria's personal crisis and increases the stakes of her relationship with Piero.

Piero drives Vittoria to her mother's apartment in his Alfa Romeo Giulietta. He tries to kiss her, but she remains distant, signaling ongoing emotional barriers. They exchange tense, charged words as the drive continues.

Piero returns to his office and must tell his investors the bad news of the crash. He struggles with delivering the report while Vittoria's personal turmoil lingers in the background. The moment underscores the collision between professional pressures and romantic uncertainty.

After work, Piero meets a call girl he had arranged but sends her away after noticing she dyed her hair. He then stands outside Vittoria's building and talks with her on the balcony, only for a drunk man to steal his sports car. The incident foreshadows the instability surrounding their relationship.

The next morning, Vittoria and Piero meet by a lake and watch as a crane lifts the stolen car with the drunk driver's body from the water. They walk together to a building under construction near Vittoria's apartment. Piero again attempts to kiss her, but she pulls away and heads home.

Later, Piero buys a new BMW and takes Vittoria to his parents' apartment, which is filled with paintings and sculptures. They kiss, and after she accidentally tears her dress, they go to a bedroom and have sex. The encounter marks a deeper physical closeness between them.

The couple lie on a hill and discuss marriage. Vittoria declares she does not miss it, even though she has never been married, and Piero grows frustrated by her inability to articulate her feelings. The moment crystallizes their incompatible desires.

Back in Piero's office, they kiss and frolic on a couch, but an alarm interrupts and they must part. They agree to see each other every day and plan to meet at 8 pm at the usual place outside the construction site. Sunday, 10 September 1961, neither of them shows up.