BERNARDO BERTOLUCCI

       He was the consummate Italian film guy. He had his finger in lots of cinematic pies. He wrote, directed, produced and even acted. Bernardo Bertolucci has lots of movie credits.
He first crosses the American film radar when Before The Revolution (1964) appears on U.S. screens. He wrote the story on which the film is based, and he wrote the screenplay. It provides a perfect snapshot of the condition of the populace before the uproar of the 60's. Young Italians of both sexes struggle with their hatred of bourgeois life and their desire for change. 
He even had a hand, admittedly small, in one of Sergio Leone’s Spaghetti Westerns with Henry Fonda acting way against type as the bad guy.  Yes, Once Upon A Time In The West (1967) is based on a Bertolucci story, and he is listed in the credits. Charles Bronson, Claudia Cardinale and Jason Robards are also in the cast. The complicated plot involves revenge for a murder, a fight over a railroad and the land it crosses, and lots of gunplay. Bertolucci’s story is lots simpler and, ok, maybe better.
The Conformist (1970) was written and directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, and the screenplay got an Oscar nomination but didn’t win. I think you would have to be familiar with Italian politics in the 60's to follow this, but maybe I’m just thick.
Bertolucci shocked the world with the wildly erotic Last Tango In Paris (1972) featuring Marlon Brando and Maria Schneider. You probably have to be over 40 and have a note from your parents to see this one. There’s lots of full frontal nudity and a famous scene involving a dairy product. The story seems incidental to all the coupling, but folks still watch this one nearly 50 years later. Bertolucci wrote the screenplay and directed. His direction garnered an Oscar nomination but he lost to George Roy Hill for The Sting.
Bertolucci wrote the screenplay for the extremely long (317 minutes!), 1900 (1998) a film about the battle for Italy’s soul between the Fascists and Communists. I have to say it really isn’t worth the time you invest in a viewing.
Bernardo Bertolucci hit the jackpot in 1987 when he wrote and directed The Last Emperor. It won Oscars for best picture and best director. It is the really interesting story of the last emperor of China, Puyi. As a toddler, he had the misfortune to become emperor at the time of the Chinese Revolution. After years as a political prisoner, he is allowed to become an ordinary Chinese citizen. John Lone (another “whatever happened to” actor) appears as the emperor as a grown man. 
All of the movies in this article are available on DVD. The last one is okay for all ages. The rest are for grown-ups.