Carlo Croccolo Movies

One man's dedication to his job has negative consequences at home in this low-key drama from Italy. Michele Rosati (Claudio Bigagli) has found success as a travelling perfume salesman, but he's paid a heavy price in his personal life; while he loves his wife Laura (Maddalena Crippa) and his two children, his work keeps him on the road most of the time, and he rarely gets to spend much time with his family. Long nights in shabby hotel rooms begin to wear on Michele, and his loneliness begins to manifest itself in paranoia. Fearful that something could be happening to his children, Michele begins to steal time away from his work, but rather than actually visiting with his kids, he spies on them from a distance, which helps neither his career or his family relationships. Shot on videotape, Commesso Viaggiatore is primarily in black-and-white, though it does feature color sequences. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

This road movie is the second feature spin-off from the popular Italian TV comedy series Never Say Goal. Three hardware store sales clerks (Aldo Baglio, Giovanni Storti, and Giacomo Poretti) travel from Milan to southern Puglia. Aldo and Giovanni are married to the daughters of their boss Eros (Carlo Croccolo), and Giacomo is on the brink of wedding the third. On the road, they carry Eros' pet dog and a valuable sculpture of a leg. Unfortunately, they accidentally kill the dog. After they pick up vacationing Chiara (Marina Massironi), Giacomo falls for her. There are more misadventures with the leg -- while Eros becomes furious over the delays. The film includes parody sequences satirizing vampire tales, gangster movies, and Italian neo-realism. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

The lives of four middle-aged gay men are chronicled in this bittersweet Italian drama. The men are the cynical Dado, who tries to come to grips with his expanding waistline, receding hairline and the thought of spending the rest of his life alone; the catty Tony, a shirt designer who is still too bonded in a complex relationship with his overbearing mother, Sandro, a film producer who only recently came out of the closet after years of feigning heterosexuality, and Vittorio, a heartbroken architect trying to cope with the fact that his beloved went out and married a woman. Their stories are told as brief vignettes and chronicle a six-month period. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Since Moliere's plays are national classics of France, an air of reverence surrounds them. However, they are for the most part comedies based on older commedia del'arte storylines and acting conventions (which most closely resemble the broad humor of the American vaudeville or the British music halls). Moliere's big innovation was to give the stock characters from these ancient themes an actual script to follow, rather than leaving them to improvise their own lines. His lines were usually much, much wittier. Otherwise, these tales are every bit as farcical (and sometimes slapstick) as anything from The Three Stooges or, for that matter, the classical farces of Plautus. However, when the actors ham it up in their parts too much, eyebrows are raised. This multinational production of Moliere's classic L'Avare, or The Miser is an excellent case in point. The lead role of Arpagone, the miser, is played exhuberantly by Alberto Sordi, who for years has traded (on and off the stage) on his pinched, miserly appearance and his romantic skittishness - somewhat akin to the shtik perfected by Jack Benny in the U.S. These characteristics also fit the role to a "T." In the story, the miserly widower is trying to arrange things for the maximum safety of his funds and to prevent his children from doing something stupid, like marrying poor people. In the meantime, his well-known wealth has made him the target of sinister matrimonial designs by the murderous sister of a powerful cardinal. He decides to find a suitable bride for himself to stave off this unhappy prospect, and at the same time arrange good marriages for his son and daughter (who have other people in mind). A triple wedding will cost little more than a single one, and will save him lots of money. Needless to say, everything goes wrong (and finally goes right) in this romantic farce. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Vittorio De Sica delivers a full-blown comic performance as Cesare Celli, an American gangster exiled to Italy and kidnapped by a collection of inept crooks. These incompetents are headed by Harry Price (Robert Wagner), who demands a ransom from Cesare's friends for his safe return. When none of Cesare's friends send money to rescue Cesare from the kidnappers, Cesare is outraged and concocts a scheme for a five-million-dollar platinum robbery as a way to pay Harry's gang back for their efforts and to get his revenge on a world that has ignored him. Cesare trains his collection of nincompoops for the robbery and imports the famed Professor Samuels (Edward G. Robinson) to plan the heist. After a series of problems raising the money for the robbery and obligatory bumblings by the gang, Cesare and his men are ready to proceed with the heist. But then, right before the robbery, Harry and his girlfriend, Juliana (Raquel Welch), decide to betray Cesare and abscond with the platinum themselves. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

With Peter Sellers as star, Neil Simon as screenwriter, and Vittorio DeSica as director, how could After the Fox miss? Miss it did, however--though the film, patchy and inconsistent though it might be, definitely has its moments. Sellers plays an Italian master thief who can't seem to stay out of jail. His latest scheme involves moving $3 million worth of stolen gold bullion from Cairo to Rome. To cover his tracks, Sellers pretends to be a "nouvelle vague" movie director, filming a crime picture. Britt Ekland, Mrs. Sellers at the time, plays his movie-struck sister. The film is effortlessly stolen by Victor Mature, who is unbearably funny as a vainglorious hasbeen Hollywood star. Director DeSica shows up in the film as "himself"-at least until all his camera equipment is stolen by Sellers and his partner-in-crime Akim Tamiroff. Never as hilarious as it should have been, After the Fox nonetheless manages a few isolated belly laughs. Outside of Mature's performance, our favorite bit in the film is the final gag: "Ze wrong man has escaped!" ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this drama, from director Anthony Asquith, the lives and stories of three different people are linked together by their possession of an unusual car, a yellow Rolls Royce Phantom II. Lord Frinton (Rex Harrison) is a diplomat who purchases the exquisite auto as a gift for his wife (Jeanne Moreau). After Frinton's horse wins the Royal Gold Cup, Lady Frinton incurs the Lord's wrath when she is caught in the back seat of the Rolls with his underling John Fane (Edmund Purdom). In the 1930s, the car is bought by Italian gangster Paolo Maltese (George C. Scott), who is carrying on with the hatcheck girl Mae Jenkins (Shirley MacLaine). The two take a tour of Italy and see all the historic sights, but Mae is less than impressed. While Paolo is in the United States on one of his frequent hit-man assignments, Mae and a street photographer try out the back seat for comfort and carnal pleasure. Art Carney plays Paolo's associate Joey. In the final episode, Gerda Millett (Ingrid Bergman) is the married American woman who buys the car in 1942. With Hitler attacking Yugoslavia the brave and brazen beauty helps fight the Nazis by smuggling Davich (Omar Shariff) across the border, and this duo also find themselves in the back seat for a roll in the Rolls. Davich shows his gratitude by shipping the car along with Gerda back to the United States. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Based on Flora Sandstrom's novel The Midwife of Pont Clery, this lightweight sexual farce involves the effect that Jessica (Angie Dickinson), a voluptuous midwife, has on the small Sicilian town in which she currently resides. Jessica is an American whose intentions may be charitable but whose physical attractions raise the libido of the men in town. Potential moms decide it is better to forego pregnancy by foregoing sex (this is a Catholic town) rather than have Jessica show up to deliver a baby. Meanwhile, the town priest (Maurice Chevalier), in his wisdom, directs Jessica's attention to the handsome widowed Marquis who lives in a charming castle, all alone -- anything to bring normal marital relations back on track. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Directed by Edward Dmytryk, The Reluctant Saint is based on the life of Saint Joseph of Cupertino. When young Giuseppe Diesa (Maximilian Schell) is sent to work at a monastery circa 17th century Italy -- his parents believed he was mentally challenged -- he surprises a local bishop by his incredible relationship with the monastery's animals. Believing this merits a traditional religious education, he is taken in and taught to pray, with miraculous results. His spiritual energy apparently allows him to levitate, which impressed many, and terrified others. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

The time is 1860: the place, northern Italy. The hero (Massimo Serato) is a young nobleman by day, a masked bandit by night. He uses his ill-gotten gains to finance a revolution against the government (these were turbulent times in Italy's history). In addition, he is between two lovers: Laura di Cassano (Tina Lattanzi), who knows him only as the Count of St. Elmo, and Bianca Barbieri (Nelly Corradi), who knows him only as the bold-and-dashing bandit. Good performances and a particularly well-paced climax compensate for the film's occasional dead spots. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide