Andrea Aurelia Movies

This time, Italian soft-core maestro Tinto Brass doesn't even try to masquerade his opus as a political drama or social criticism. A young country girl (Debora Caprioglio) comes to town and works in a brothel in order to help her fiance get the money to start his own business. "Paprika" is the name given to her by the madam. ~ Yuri German, Rovi

In 1978, Italian politics were thrown into turmoil when the Christian Democratic president Aldo Moro was executed. This gripping political drama is based on American journalist Robert Katz's non-fiction book Days of Wrath and documents the convoluted chain of events that lead to Moro's death. Moro was the first politico to bring his country's political factions together in 40 years. His ordeal begins shortly after he is elected. He is en route to church with his five body guards when they are ambushed by radical communist terrorists, the Red Brigade. They quickly execute the body guards and spirit Moro to a hidden "people's prison' where he is interrogated. Neither Moro's Christian Democrats nor the newly reinstated Communists will deal or in any way acknowledge the Red Brigade. They do however engage in a massive search for the missing Moro. But the search is poorly organized and ineffectual. Meanwhile Moro is allowed to send letters to the government. He suggests that the Vatican be called in to negotiate a prisoner exchange with the terrorists, but the Vatican refuses. Instead, they make a formal plea for Moro's unconditional freedom. The government does little or nothing to help the president and Moro realizes that the organization he helped create has abandoned him. In desperation, he becomes sharply critical of the government that continues to stall while the Red Brigade becomes increasingly frustrated and impatient. Eventually they decide to kill Moro and later stuff his body in a red Renault which they parked between the Christian Democrat and the Communist headquarters. The Moro Affair or Il Caso Moro as it was known in Italy, was extremely popular in it's native country, but it also sparked considerable controversy for as the case unfolds, nagging doubts and holes arise that infer that perhaps the government had more of a hand in the assassination than the Red Brigade. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

The stage comedian Carlo Verdone directed and stars as the three main characters -- Furio, Mimmo, and Pasquale -- in this classic Italian comedy. All three men are driving back to their hometowns to vote on election day, and each has a different story and a different though easily recognizable personality type. Furio drives his wife nuts with his unceasing chatter -- in a switch of gender stereotypes -- and is obsessed with perfection. When his car gets a flat, he dashes off to phone the Automobile Club for help, but then finds that in his brief absence his tire has already been changed by a generous motorist. Perfectionist to the letter, he takes off the good tire and replaces it with the flat one so the Automobile Club will get the flat they expect. Mimmo is a Mama's boy from Trastevere who rides along with his oversized Grandmama, and the third character, Pasquale, suffers from socialization never succeeded in taking firm hold. As he re-enters Italy, driving back from Munich where he now lives, parts of his car get stolen one by one. The moral seems to be that Italy is filled with all types of people, from those who will replace your tire to those who walk off with it. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

A Confederate deserter battles a Mexican bandit when the deserter's child dies for lack of milk. Warner (George Hilton) receives word his girlfriend is dying and about to give birth to the couple's child. The woman is the daughter of Don Pedro Sandoval (Ernest Borgnine), who hates all gringos and Warner in particular. Warner sets out for Juarez, but is captured by a Confederate unit and jailed. He escapes with two other men when they flee from their grave-digging detail. Warner arrives in Juarez where he finds his lover has died of cholera after having given birth to a baby boy. Sandoval gives the squalling, sickly infant to Warner, but the locals refuse to help Warner find milk for the baby. One callous rancher drops a bottle of milk rather than help the hated gringo. The baby dies, and Warner and his men join a group of outlaw monks led by the Padre (Leo Anchoriz). Warner seeks revenge on those who would not help his cause. Staying one step ahead of the cholera epidemic and the Confederates. Warner returns to the rancher who dropped the bottle and drowns him in a bucket of milk while the townsfolk watch in horror. The gang continues to rob and pillage, taking refuge in a bar and pawing at the saloon girls. Warner then sets his sights on Sandoval. He tracks the bandit to a bull ring where the two fight with knives for the inevitable showdown. The film is plagued by poor English dubbing. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Spaghetti Western fans used to the likes of Django and The Good, The Bad and the Ugly might be taken by surprise when watching Sabata. True, the film does star spaghetti Western star Lee Van Cleef as the tight-lipped hero of the title, but it has a very different feel from the genre's traditional, Sergio Leone-derived style. Director/co-writer Gianfranco Parolini (alias Frank Kramer) takes things in a direction that seems to fall halfway between The Wild Wild West TV series and a James Bond movie; the film is packed with colorful characters, exotic weapons, and the action scenes that mix wild stunts with pyrotechnics. Parolini appropriately gives the film a light touch, playing up the colorful and humorous aspects while delivering the action. The end result is a little too long for this sort of light material, causing it to drag a bit in the middle, but it is too good-natured and entertaining to dislike. In short, Sabata is likely to make fun viewing for Euro-cult fans and anyone interested in an offbeat Western. ~ Donald Guarisco, Rovi

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, Rovi

Once again William of Ivanhoe returns from the Crusades to free the Saxons from bondage in twelfth-century England, claim the hand of the fair maid and rescue her from dire consequences. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi

In this epic costumer, a christianized Roman centurion fights back against those who would slaughter his fellow believers. His odyssey begins when Emperor Constantine dies and is replaced by a new Christian-hating Emperor. The centurion takes refuge in a barbarian camp. Later he returns to Rome as a gladiator and wins freedom for the Christians by beating three foes in the arena. Following a devastating earthquake, he is again sent to fight. The new emperor and most of Rome is destroyed. The brave Christian soldier is then free to preach the gospel. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this swashbuckler, a sensuous female pirate takes over her retired father's ship and sails off for high-seas adventure and romance. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

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, Rovi

In this 16th-century swashbuckler, the trouble begins when a sea captain is unjustly sentenced to hang by the evil ruler of the Duchy of Doruzzo and his daughter. Meanwhile, the comely lass who believes herself the doomed captain's daughter is about to be sold to a harem when they are freed by a handsome hero whom the captain hopes will marry his daughter. Father and daughter then become pirates, and the hero is obligated to catch them, but when he falls in love with the girl, he switches allegiance and helps her attack the ruler's palace. The two then lead the other pirates, and the angry peasants in a revolt, resulting in the eventual death of the ruler, who confesses on his deathbed that the female pirate (the captain's supposed daughter) is his real daughter and heir to the Duchy; he then goes on to tell her that years before he had ordered the captain to kill her, but he refused and raised her instead. This confession so angers the other daughter that she goes into a convent; meanwhile the pirate lovers prepare for their wedding. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Yet another in a spate of historical costume dramas by Italian filmmakers, Hannibal tells the story of the famous general's battles and his ill-advised march across the snowy Alps. To make life that much more interesting, violence, gore, sex, love, and personal issues are thrown in for good measure. The great general is played by Victor Mature and his main love interest Sylvia by Rita Gam. As Hannibal's successes in battle increase, it seems like he is fated for ultimate victory, but his own failings are his undoing in the end. Unevenly paced and unconvincing in parts, this offering by director Carlo Ludovico Bragaglia (best-known for the "Toto" series of comedies) is geared more for audiences out for spectacle and entranced by history, no matter how it is interpreted. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi