Franco Fabrizi Movies

Italian maestro Federico Fellini's first international success is a nakedly autobiographical film that bears many of the formal and thematic concerns that recur throughout his work. Set in the director's hometown of Rimini, I Vitelloni follows the lives of five young vitelloni, or layabouts, who while away their listless days in their small seaside village. Fausto (Franco Fabrizi), the leader of the pack, marries his sweetheart, but finds himself constantly distracted by other women. Meanwhile, would-be playwright Leopoldo (Leopoldo Trieste) continues work on his dreary plays, dreaming of staging them one day. Clownish Alberto (Alberto Sordi) still lives at home with his mother and sister, Olga (Claude Farell), while boasting of preserving the family honor by watching over her. While the movie seems to pay little attention to Riccardo (Riccardo Fellini) and Moraldo (Franco Interlenghi), the latter eventually emerges as its key character, plainly serving as Fellini's alter ego. Stuck in adolescence, the five friends stumble into various misadventures, as they seek to spice up their uneventful provincial lives. Ultimately, one of them breaks free from their self-imposed paralysis and moves on, leading to one of the most poignant farewell sequences in film history. A hit in Italy upon its release, I Vitelloni secured Fellini's reputation as an up-and-coming talent, while also introducing its title into Italian vernacular. ~ Elbert Ventura, All Movie Guide

La Romana (Women of Rome) is a worthwhile early starring vehicle for Gina Lollobrigida. "La Lollo" plays a young woman who is strong-armed into a modelling career by her ambitious mother. Before long, she discovers that there's a lot more money to be had if she sells her body rather than merely putting it on display. Of the many men in her life, Lollobrigida truly loves only one, but doesn't realize this until it's too late. American prints of La Romana were heavily trimmed to avoid the steamier passages, but Lollobrigida's star quality comes through loud and clear. The film was adapted by director Luigi Zampa from a novel by Alberto Moravia. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Roman couturier Clelia (Eleonora Rossi-Drago) leaves the big city to work at a boutique in Turin. She moves into a hotel and makes several new friends, but is soon drawn into their extremely unpleasant lives. Clelia enters a doomed relationship with a poor architect's assistant (Ettore Manni), sees her new best friend Rosetta (Madeleine Fischer) commit suicide after being jilted by her married lover (Gabriele Ferzetti), and is eventually fired from her new job when her hysteria over Rosetta's death interferes with her work. Clelia finally goes back to Rome, and viewers will not blame her a bit. Le Amiche, based on a 1949 article published in La Bella Estate ("Tre Donne Sole" by Cesare Pavese), is perhaps Michelangelo Antonioni's first great film. Juggling 10 characters with great aplomb, Antonioni and co-screenwriters Suso Cecchi D'Amico and Alba De Cespedes have created a rich, interlocking narrative which manages to rise above mere melodrama through careful attention to the ebb and flow of interpersonal relationships and a keen sense of balance. The fine supporting cast includes Valentina Cortese, Yvonne Furneaux, and Franco Fabrizi. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide

Racconti Romani (Roman Tales) is a fast-paced comedy based on the short stories of Alberto Moravia. Tying the various narratives together is a gang of young Romans who'll do anything to line their pockets with money. Unfortunately, most of their schemes are at odds with the Law, and most culminate with the schemers losing what little cash they already have. Still, the young protagonists don't learn their lesson until they become mixed up with a counterfeiting ring. The well-chosen cast includes Franco Fabrizi as the gang's leader, Silvana Pampanini as his ever-patient wife, and Vittorio de Sica and Toto in cameo roles. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Roger Vadim's second directorial project was Sait-On Jamais, which was released in English-speaking countries as Does One Ever Know and No Sun in Venice. Set in Italy, this romantic suspenser is inventively paced to the musical improvisations of the Modern Jazz Quartet. On a Venetian holiday, a French journalist (Christian Marquand) meets and subsequently beds a mysterious beauty (Francoise Arnoul). Before long, the journalist is mixed up with the woman's ex-lover, a neurotic hoodlum (Robert Hossein) in the employ of a depraved Austrian baron (O.E. Hasse). Greed rears its ugly head when the hood bumps off the baron while searching for the latter's hidden millions. It all ends in a thrilling rooftop chase at the baron's palatial estate. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Five romantic and funny vignettes comprise this Italian anthology that is set amidst the beauty and fun of the famed French coastline. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Prolific director Giorgio Bianchi comes off with another good comedy in Il Moralista, due in no small part to the talents of Alberto Sordi as Agostino, the de facto head of a censorship board whose double life as a nightclub owner might raise some questions as to his censorial judgment. The titular head of the organization (Vittorio De Sica) is not that interested in running it himself, being more interested in women. The censors must review everything from posters for a show to the costumes in a show, as well as a production's language and content. Given their predilections, Agostino and his boss are unlikely candidates for making others walk the straight and narrow path of socially acceptable fare. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

The Nights of Lucretia Borgia and not her days in history are the openly seductive draw in this standard Italian costume drama with a rather weak storyline. Lucretia of the poisonous vial (Belinda Lee) lusts after the handsome swordsman (Jacques Sernas) who works for her nefarious brother Cesare. Lucretia's main problem, after her murderous inclinations, is how to snare the swordsman away from a gorgeous rival (Michele Mercier). This challenge is something that could promote a little sibling cooperation, since Cesare wants Lucretia's bewitching rival for himself. One of the more impressive aspects of this film is the music of Alexander Derevitsky played by the Rome Philharmonic Orchestra. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Set in ancient Rome, this film follows the struggle of Roman triplets as they battle their Alban arch-enemies to prevent Rome from being annexed to Alba. ~ Iotis Erlewine, All Movie Guide

A stellar international cast compensates somewhat for the rambling plotlessness of The Girl Game. The film takes place during Carnival Time in Rio De Janeiro. As unconfined joy wafts its way through the streets, the lives of several fabulously wealthy visitors and a group of voluptuous stewardesses intersect, sometimes with startling results. Sylvia Koscina and Mylene Demongeot are among the visual delights of this garish romp. Originally released at 125 minutes, The Girl Game (also known as Copacabana Palace and The Saga of the Flying Hostesses) was pared down to 90 minutes for its play-off dates. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Not to be confused with the like-vintage Brazilian film Besame Mucho, the Italian-Spanish Besame is a confusing melange of several genres. Sara Montiel, Maurice Ronet, and Franco Fabrizi are the most recognizable faces appearing on camera during the film's 101 minutes. Per the title, which translates to "Kiss Me", the film spotlights plenty of romantic entanglements. These are subjugated to a dizzying progression of espionage activities, wherein no one is able to separate the good guys from the bad guys. Films in Review magazine used to refer to international spy flicks like Besame as "kaleidescopes"-as apt a description as any for this almost indescribable romp. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide