Fit to Be Untied 

Matti da slegare / Fit to Be Untied

Sandro Petraglia, Stefano Rulli, Silvano Agosti, Marco Bellocchio, Italy, 1975, 135’ 

A groundbreaking documentary, a historical document of exceptional value, and a compelling example of Italian activist cinema, the film supports the premises of psychiatrist Franco Basaglia and contributes to the political and social commitment to abolish psychiatric hospitals. Followed by a discussion on Basaglia, an important reformer of psychiatric institutions, and on the representation of his work in cinema. 

The documentary was filmed in 1974 in a psychiatric hospital in Colorno, Parma, to support Basaglia’s ideas on mental illness and his political and social advocacy for the abolition of mental hospitals. Fit to Be Untied, a distilled version of a 3 1/2-hour television film (Nessuno o tutti), aimed to show that many patients admitted to psychiatric hospitals could be discharged without danger and for their own good. In the film, patients with mental illness tell their stories and make suggestions for changing the then system. Reform of this system was also the aim of the so-called Basaglia Law (La legge Basaglia), which was passed three years after the film’s release, in 1978. 

Restored in 2021, the documentary is one of the few truly convincing examples of Italian activist cinema capable of dissecting the theme of “madness” with a real analysis that benefits from the contributions and struggles of anti-psychiatrists and recovery experiences with workers in Emilia. Nessuno o tutti – Matti da slegare (No One or Everyone – Fit to Be Untied) was born from the political and administrative experience of the Emilia-Romagna Region and the Province of Parma. Focusing on four patients, it constitutes a document of extraordinary value in addressing the issue of mental illness.  

Stefano Rulli is a screenwriter and director born in 1949. In 1975 he directed Nessuno o tutti – Matti da slegare in collaboration with Marco Bellochio, Silvano Agosti and Sandro Petraglia. As a screenwriter, he has collaborated on television hits such as La piovra and on numerous films that have won the most prestigious awards: The Stolen Children (Il ladro di bambini) directed by Gianni Amelio (Jury Grand Prix at Cannes), The Bull (Il toro) directed by Carlo Mazzacurati (Silver Lion at Venice), and The Best of Youth (La meglio gioventù) directed by Marco Tullio Giordano (‘Un certain régard’ at Cannes). He has won four ‘David di Donatello’ Awards, presented by the Italian Film Academy, including for The Stolen Children. From 2012 to 2016 he was President of the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome. 

The screening will be followed by a discussion with Stefano Rulli and Mila Lazić about the film and the work of Franco Basaglia.

In cooperation with the Kino Basaglia project, which is part of the official programme of the European Capital of Culture GO! 2025.