Set, like The Leopard and Vanina Vanini, during the Risorgimento (but, because of its release during World War II, much less widely known abroad than those two films), Old-Fashioned World elegantly recreates a world of gracious manners and bitter conflicts, both political and personal. In Austrian-occupied Lombardy in 1850, young aristocrat Franco (Massimo Serato) marries the humble Luisa (Alida Valli), incurring the wrath of his grandmother, a marchioness (Ada Dondini). As the nation of Italy begins to come together, a family is forced apart by contradictory definitions of propriety, honor, and justice. This was the role that established Valli as a serious actress; like Lake Como, beside which parts of the film are set, she presents a surface of luminous tranquility giving way to unpredictable depths. Dondini, meanwhile, is a force of nature as the mountainous marchesa.