Certainly no metropolis, but one of the prettiest little villages in the whole of Sardinia, and the place to meet all sorts of people, especially on Thursdays. The term “shooting” a film was invented here, among the rows of relatively similar stalls, where mini-characters from Porto Rotondo, Porto Cervo, Porto Rafael and even Puntaldia can be found shooting the breeze on market day. San Pantaleo has been a preferred location for film, photo and video productions, and several feature films shot entirely or partly in the village are available to stream:
El Che Guevara
In 1968, Cinecittà Studios transformed San Pantaleo into a Bolivian village for a film production. In the surrounding area Che, portrayed by Francisco (Paco) Rabal – Luis Buñuel’s favourite Spanish actor – is hunted down and eventually captured. The village was invaded by a large cast, and several extras played South American militiamen or simple spectators in Andean-style dress, complete with colourful ponchos.
Dove Volano i Corvi d’Argento
This Italian film, directed by Pietro Livi and starring Renzo Montagnini, was shot entirely in San Pantaleo. Aside from the story of bandits and revenge, it provides a useful snapshot of the village in 1976.
The Spy Who Loved Me
Roger Moore’s incarnation of 007 arrived in San Pantaleo along with Barbara Bach. In the 1977 hit “The Spy Who Loved Me”, the pair are chased through the centre and along the road to Olbia by a killer on a motorbike, just before the historic scene featuring the car emerging from the sea, filmed at Capriccioli beach.
Eutanasia di un Amore
A romance filmed in 1978, starring Ornella Muti and Tony Musante, who set off together on a tour of the Mediterranean in search of happiness. Several beaches along the coast can be spotted, including Liscia Ruja, while a prophetic scene of a large private party was shot in the village.
Sos Laribiancos – I Dimenticati
Piero Livi returned to San Pantaleo in 1999 to shoot this film set in the 1940s with an almost entirely Sardinian cast. The village square and adjacent streets were covered with sand, all signs of modernity concealed or camouflaged, and half the residents were called upon to act as extras in this tale of a group of Sardinians who leave the island and end up on the Russian front.
