Francesco de Rosa Movies

Some things never change as this Italian comedy which spoofs government corruption, sports, night clubs, and the Mafia, amply proves. It is set in Rome, circa 71 B.C. and features comic actor Leslie Nielsen as a character similar to those in his Naked Gun series. Just as magistrate Antonio Servilio is arriving in Rome filled with ambition. Whilst travelling via the Appian Way, his chariot is run into by the chariot of Cesare Atticus, a dishonest senator with a love of women. So begins the grudge between the two who with every meeting find reasons to despise each other further. Judge Servilio places Atticus under observation after he receives evidence and information from Atticus's former mistress of his dishonest dealings. To discredit the magistrate, Atticus enlists the help of right-winger Cinico who sets the judge up with a buxom beauty who involves him in an orgy. The publicly humiliated Servilio is banished to Sicily where he encounters the early Mafia. Eventually Servilio and Atticus join forces to expose Cinico, the real villain. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

The vast differences 27 years makes between Italian comedy, the city of Rome, the stars in this film, and filmmaking itself are apparent in this 1985 sequel to the 1958 I Soliti Ignoti. Clips from the earlier film highlight the changes. Returning to reprise their roles are Marcello Mastroianni, Vittorio Gassman, and Tiberio Murgia. Tiberio (the character played by Mastroianni) has been released from jail, and he is unable to find work. Forced to reluctantly join up with the old gang leader Peppe (Gassman), Tiberio agrees to do a smuggling job when Peppe falls ill. Packing his vehicle with decoy passengers for the border guards, the run works well until everyone is heading back again -- then a series of misunderstandings lead to an unexpected turn of events and a mistaken killing. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

This freewheeling look at Naples and its foibles through the tenants who live in an apartment building offers a fictionalized but lively account of what it means to be Neapolitan. Gennaro Bellavista (director and co-scripter Luciano De Crescenzo) holds classroom court every day in the building, where his neighbors and the concierges gather to listen to his instructive and opinionated views of the city. For Bellavista, the northern Italians are inspired by concepts like "freedom," while the more hot-blooded southerners are swayed the most by love. A case in point is the stuffy Milanese businessman Cazzaniga (Renato Scarpa) who starts to rearrange the mailboxes the moment he moves into his apartment -- now it remains to be seen if he will give in to the southern love of fun. Shadows are cast on the insular lives of these tenants as references to the "Camorra" -- a local Neapolitan Mafia -- and the threat of rising unemployment indicate that not everything is fun, even for the southerners. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide