Laurentina Guidotti Movies
Director Federico Fellini gently lampoons the world of small-time show business in Ginger and Fred. Giulietta Masina and Marcello Mastroianni star as Amelia Bonetti and Pippo Botticella, a onetime celebrity song-and-dance team. Having risen to fame with a dancing act where they recreated the acts of Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire (hoping to become the Fred and Ginger of Italy), Amelia and Pippo parted company to pursue their separate lives. Neither one was particularly successful in other fields of endeavor, so when after many years Amelia is offered a guest-star gig on a TV variety show, she jumps at the chance. She also seeks out her former partner, Pippo, who may have looked like Astaire in his younger days, but now....The overall good cheer of the film was dampened when the real Ginger Rogers sued the distributors of Ginger and Fred for "defamation of character." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marcello Mastroianni, Giulietta Masina, (more)
- 1990
In this earnest docudrama, ten episodes depicting the suffering arising out of drug-use are shown. In one story, a pharmacist working an overnight shift helps a boy through drug withdrawal. In another, a mother whose daughter is now free of drugs gives her a pair of valuable coral earrings as a celebratory gift. In another, an newborn is shown suffering from withdrawal: his mother was addicted throughout her pregnancy. Each scene illustrates some aspect of the travails of drug addiction, but never simplistically blames the victims alone for their plight. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Athina Cenci, Sergio Castellitto, (more)
- 1993
Antonio (Enrico Salimbeni) may not have been the most energetic waiter in the most popular restaurant in this unfashionable Adriatic tourist town, but that is no reason for his boss not to pay him. When he takes the wages that he is owed out of the till, not only does the owner throw him out, but he has him beaten up, to boot. Enzo (Mario Adorf), the owner of a restaurant so far off the beaten track it is widely known as Abissinia rather than being called by its true name, takes him in. The leisurely pace of everything that is done at the restaurant leaves Antonio with plenty of time to put together the story of its owner and the love of his life, and how he, too, fell from culinary glory to his present obscurity. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mario Adorf, Grazyna Szapolowska, (more)
- 1996
A college graduate looks for work in this low-budget but dead-on Italian comedy. Sergio is proud of his shiny new degree in agronomy and is anxious to put it -- and his theories on growing crops in arid areas -- to good use. To this end, he purchases a copy of "The Practical Guide to Finding Work," an extremely upbeat guide (passages are narrated during the action) that tells him how to pen a resumé, gives him interviewing techniques, and offers many other useful tips. The book works, and Sergio finds himself in line for a plum job in Africa. Unfortunately, before he can go, he must surmount a few obstacles, including his ex-girlfriend Rita and his womanizing, lazy roommate Enzo. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
