Biography
Anna Maria Massetani better known as Lea Massari (30 June 1933 — 23 June 2025) was an Italian actress. When she was 22, she changed her name to Lea Massari after the death of her fiancé Leo. She studied architecture in Switzerland. Massari became a celebrity in art cinema for two roles, the missing girl Anna in Michelangelo Antonioni's L'avventura (1960), and as Clara, the mother of a sexually precocious 14-year-old boy named Laurent (Benoît Ferreux) in Louis Malle's Murmur of the Heart (1971). She worked in both Italian and French Cinema. Her career includes Sergio Leone's debut Il Colosso di Rodi, and international commercial films such as Les choses de la vie. She was a member of the jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1975. She won Nastro d'Argento as Best Supporting Actress for her role in Francesco Rosi's Christ Stopped at Eboli.
Movies & TV Shows
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L'Avventura (1960) — Anna
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The Night Caller (1975) — Norah Elmer
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The Things of Life (1970) — Catherine Bérard
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Murmur of the Heart (1971) — Clara Chevalier
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The Colossus of Rhodes (1961) — Diala
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Indian Summer (1972) — Monica
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A Difficult Life (1961) — Elena Pavinato
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Christ Stopped at Eboli (1979) — Luisa Levi
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The Meetings of Anna (1978) — Anna's mother
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The Seventh Target (1984) — Nelly
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The Four Days of Naples (1962) — Maria
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The Silent One (1973) — Maria
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Allonsanfan (1974) — Charlotte
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The Camp Followers (1965) — Toula
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The Unvanquished (1964) — Dominique Servet
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And Hope to Die (1972) — Sugar
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I Want Him Dead (1968) — Aloma
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Made in Italy (1965) — Monica (segment "1 'Usi e costumi', episode 3")
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Garden of Delights (1967)
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A Dog Called... Vengeance (1977) — Muriel
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From a Roman Balcony (1960) — Freya
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The Probability Factor (1976) — Gloria
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Violette & Francois (1977) — Cécile Levene
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Paris Pick-Up (1962) — Marthe Dravet
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Impossible Object (1973) — Hippolyta
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Bloody Murder (1974) — Helene Noblet
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The Woman in Blue (1973) — Aurélie
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Weeping for a Bandit (1964) — María Jerónima
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Secrets Secrets (1985) — Marta
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Antonio Gramsci: The Days of Prison (1977) — Tania
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Faces of Love (1977) — Cecilia
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The Brothers Karamazov (1969) — Agrafena Aleksàndrovna
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The Son (1973) — Maria
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Chi dice donna, dice donna (1976) — Gilbert
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Conquered City (1962) — Lelia Mendores
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Sarah (1983) — Carla Angelli
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Return to Lisca Bianca Island (1983) — Anna (voice) (archive footage)
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Devil's Ransom (1971) — Britt
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I sogni nel cassetto (1957) — Lucia Moretti
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Forbidden (1955) — Agnese Barras