After a role in '' Si salvi chi vuole '' ( 1980 ) , and a smaller part in Peter Zinner 's '' The Salamander '' opposite Franco Nero , Anthony Quinn , and Christopher Lee , Cardinale played the love interest of Marcello Mastroianni in Liliana Cavani 's war picture '' The Skin '' , a film which also reunited her with Burt Lancaster . '' The Skin '' was entered into the 1981 Cannes Film Festival . In 1982 , Cardinale appeared in Werner Herzog 's Fitzcarraldo , playing a successful brothel owner who funds Klaus Kinski 's purchase of an old steamship in South America . The film , inspired by the story of Peruvian rubber baron Carlos Fermín Fitzcarrald was shot on location in Brazil and Peru . The film was critically acclaimed , with Vincent Canby of '' The New York Times '' calling it " a fine , quirky , fascinating movie " and a " stunning spectacle " , comparing the dynamic between Kinski and Cardinale to Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart in John Huston 's '' The African Queen '' . He pointed out that although Cardinale 's screen time in the film was unfortunately not substantial , she set its comic tone ; he praised the way she managed to turn Kinski , renowned for his volatile temperament and portrayals of megalomaniacs and criminals into a " genuinely charming screen presence " , adding a new dimension to his acting career . Later that year , Cardinale played opposite Pierre Mondy in the sex farce '' Le Cadeau '' , a role which biographers Lancia and Minelli claim was played with a " mature charm and expressiveness "
1981 Cannes Film Festival
1981 Cannes Film Festival
Claudia Cardinale