She was born Elena Maureen Bertolino in London, England on September 29th 1924, to an Italian father and English mother.
Marina's first film appearances came when she was aged 17 with 2 small roles in 1941. Within 2 years she graduated to leading roles, becoming one of the brightest lights of wartime and post-war Italian cinema.
In 1944 she married actor Claudio Gora, whom she had appeared with in La storia di una capinera the previous year. They would remain married until Gora's death in 1998 and they had 5 children, including actors Andrea, Carlo and Marina Giordana.
Having maintained top-billing through the 40's, moving into the 50's and 60's her work became somewhat erratic, she would still receive high billing and sporadically appear in substantial roles in prestigious projects, but she could equally turn up in very obscure productions or minor supporting roles. From the mid-60's onwards she would very often appear in productions which also featured roles for her husband or children and would balance appearances in feature films and television. She retired from the screen in 1994, bar one final role in 2002.
Marina died following a long illness, aged 78, in Rome on October 29th 2002. She is buried in Cimitero Flaminio in Rome.
- La fuggitiva .... Lucia (uncredited)
1943 - Giacomo l'idealista …. Celestina (credited)
- La primadonna …. Ester (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- La storia di una capinera …. Maria Anselmi (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- La valle del diavolo …. Greta Hansel (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
1944 - La donna della montagna …. Zosi (credited)
1945 - I dieci comandamenti …. unknown role (poster credit)
- Il testimone …. Linda (credited as "Maurin Melrose")
- La porta del cielo …. "La crocerossina" (credited)
1946 - Notte di tempesta …. Caterina (credited as "Maureen Melrose")
1947 - Preludio d'amore …. Anna (credited)
- Sinfonia fatale …. Mirella (credited)
1949 - Il grido della terra …. Dina (credited)
- Prince of Foxes …. Angela Borgia (credited)
- Vespro siciliano …. Laura (credited)
1950 - Deported …. Gina Carapia (credited)
- Il cielo è rosso …. Carla (credited)
- Il sentiero dell'odio …. Bella Pietramala (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
1951 - Il Capitano Nero …. Barbara Vivaldi (credited)
- Operazione Mitra …. Marisa Rossi (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- Quo Vadis …. Eunice (credited)
- Up Front …. Emi Rosso (credited)
1952 - Amore rosso …. Marianna Sirca (credited)
- Carne inquieta …. Femia Ferrara (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- La colpa di una madre …. Alma (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- La regina di Saba …. Princess Zamira (credited)
1953 - Ai margini della metropoli …. Luisa (credited)
- Febbre di vivere …. Lucia (credited)
1954 - Casta diva …. Beatrice Turina (credited)
- I cavalieri della regina …. Jacqueline Planchet (poster credit)
1955 - Abdulla the Great …. Aziza (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
1956 - Il canto dell'emigrante …. Mara (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- Il cavaliere dalla spada nera …. Laura di Monfalcone (credited)
- Maria Antonietta, regina di Francia …. Contessa di Polignac (credited)
1958 - I graditi ospiti (TV movie) …. Evelina (credited)
1959 - Ben-Hur …. Flavia (uncredited)
1960 - E' morto Jack (TV movie) …. Petra (credited)
- Il salotto di Oscar Wilde (TV movie) …. unknown role (credited)
- La pisana (TV mini-series) - eps. 4 & 5 …. Contessa Migliana (credited)
- Un eroe del nostro tempo …. unknown role (poster credit)
1961 - Giallo club - Invito al poliziesco (TV series) - season 4, ep. 1: "La morte ha due volti" …. Vivian (credited)
- Madame Sans Gêne …. Elisa Bonaparte (credited)
1962 - Il tiranno di Siracusa …. Mereka (credited)
- Jessica …. Filippella Risino (credited)
- La congiura dei Dieci …. Countess of Osta (credited)
1963 - A Face in the Rain …. Anna (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
- Cleopatra … Queen at Tarsus (scenes deleted)
1964 - Intrigo a Parigi …. Madame Danoni (credited)
- Le conseguenze …. Elena (poster credit - unconfirmed role)
1965 - Made in Italy …. Bored diner (credited)
1966 - Un angelo per Satana …. Ilda (credited as "Maureen Melrose")
1967 - Qualcuno ha tradito …. Anna (credited)
- Un uomo, un cavallo, una pistola …. Ethel (credited)
1968 - Odissea (TV mini-series) - eps. 2, 3, 4 & 5 …. Arete (credited)
1969 - Giocando a golf una mattina (TV mini-series) - all episodes …. Mabel Scott (credited)
- If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium …. Gina (credited)
- Jekyll (TV mini-series) - eps. 1 & 2 …. Barbara Utterson (credited)
- L'odio è il mio dio …. Blanche Durand (credited as "Marina Bertie")
- Nero Wolfe (TV series, ep. 1: "Veleno in sartoria") …. Callie Frost (credited)
- Strada senza uscita …. Sergio's mother (no credit info)
- Temptation …. unknown role (poster credit)
1970 - Il caso ''Venere privata'' …. Alberta's sister (credited)
- Il corvo (TV movie) …. Ines (credited)
- La califfa …. Clementine Doberdò (credited)
1971 - Storie dell'anno mille (TV mini-series) - ep. 3 …. unknown role (credited)
1973 - Buona parte di Paolina …. unknown role (poster credit)
1974 - La polizia chiede aiuto …. Signora Polvesi (credited)
- Mosè (TV mini-series) - eps. 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7 …. Eliseba (credited)
1975 - Divina creatura …. Manoela's aunt (credited)
- L'ultimo treno della notte …. Lisa Stradi (credited)
1976 - Don Milani …. La professoressa (credited)
- Garofano rosso …. Alessio's mother (credited)
1977 - Jesus of Nazareth (TV mini-series) - ep. 1 …. Elizabeth (credited)
- La mossa del cavallo (TV mini-series) - ep. 4: "La parte che ti spetta" …. Virginia (credited)
- Una spirale di nebbia …. Costanza Sangermano (credited)
1978 - I problemi di Don Isidro (TV mini-series) - ep.: "3° problema: L'orgoglio dei Sangiacomo" …. Elga (credited)
1980 - La donna in bianco (TV mini-series) - eps. 2 & 3 …. Contessa Fosco (credited)
1982 - Delitto di stato (TV mini-series, all episodes) …. Osanna (credited)
- Il giovane dottor Freud (TV mini-series) - ep. 3: "L'autoanalisi" …. Amalie Freud (credited)
1984 - La cicogna si diverte (TV movie) .... Maddalena Lonant (credited)
- Nata d'amore (TV mini-serie) - ep. 2 .... Duchess Zorrilla (credited on Radiocorriere TV)
1985 - Il pentito …. unknown role (credited)
1988 - La posta in gioco …. Wife of Mario Bellomo (credited)
1989 - Disperatamente Giulia (TV mini-series) .... Silvia (credited - unconfirmed role)
1992 - Edera (TV series) Eps. 1-19, 21-22 .... Sister Marta (credited)
- Mit dem herzen einer mutter (TV movie) .... Carla DeConti (credited)
- Ostinato destino …. Eva Meyer (credited)
- Schloß Hohenstein – Irrwege zum Glück (TV series) S. 1, eps. 2,3,4,5 & 6 .... Princess Federica di Veneria (credited)
1994 - Schloß Hohenstein – Irrwege zum Glück (TV series) S. 2, eps. 1,2,3,6 & 7 .... Princess Federica di Veneria (no credit info)
2002 - Amen. …. La Principessa (credited)
- Carosello (1967) "Din Don Natale Cin Cin Cinzano" advertisement
- Cronache del cinema e del teatro (1968) Documentary series, episode dedicated to "La famiglia Gora"
- Divieto di sosta (1941) - ANICA
- Veglia nella notte (1948) - IMDb
- Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Presents, also known as Rhinegold Theatre (1955 TV series) Episode: "The Treasure of Urbano" - IMDb as Marianna
- Faccia da mascalzone (1956) - ANICA
- I tre moschettieri (1956 TV series) - IMDb in unknown episode as Jacqueline Planchet
- Le avventure di Robi e Buck (1957) - ANICA
- Planeta Venere (1972) - ANICA
- Nata d'amore (1984 TV mini-series) - Episode 2 - IMDb as Duchessa Zorrilla
- Embassy (1985 TV movie) - IMDb as Marina
- L'ultima mazurka (1987) - ANICA as Woman on the train
- La ragnatela (1991 TV mini-series) - Episodes 1-3, IMDb
- Dall'altra parte del mondo (1992) - ANICA as Teresa