Aldo Maccione Movies
French comedian and lead actor in international films, onscreen from the '70s. ~ All Movie Guide- 2005
In Housewarming (the original title of which translates as Remodeling: You Know When It Starts...), Carole Bouquet stars as Chantal Letellier, a wealthy, powerful, and happily divorced Paris attorney who devotes a lot of her time to helping the city's poorly treated immigrants. Chantal literally dances her way through the courtroom, winning over the judges with ease. Her busy life seems to be going swimmingly until she decides to remodel her massive apartment. She hires a brilliant but mercurial former client from Colombia, Eduardo (Marcial Di Fonzo Bo), as her architect. He and his illegal immigrant crew are highly qualified, just not in the jobs they've been hired to do, and they quickly begin to demolish her home. A few other problems arise. Poncin (Jean-Pierre Castaldi), an obnoxious wealthy former client, has fallen in love with Chantal and begun stalking her. Her young daughter, Pulchérie (Giulia Dussolier), apparently has a crush on a worker with a questionable background who speaks no French and calls himself Betamax (Geovanny Tituaña). Chantal's teenaged son, Martin (Ferdinand Chesnais), quickly grows irritated with the destruction, and the workers' devil-may-care attitude. As Eduardo's ambitions grow, and the project's costs mount, Chantal's immense reserve of patience begins to wane. Housewarming, directed by Brigitte Roüan, marks the last filmed appearance by legendary producer Humbert Balsan, who committed suicide in 2005. The film also stars Aldo Maccione, Didier Flamand, Sotigui Kouyaté, Bernard Menez, and Françoise Brion. Housewarming was shown by the Film Society of Lincoln Center as part of their Rendez-Vous with French Cinema in 2006. ~ Josh Ralske, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carole Bouquet, Giulia Dussolier, (more)
- 2002
Directed by Aldo Baglio, La Leggenda di Al, John e Jack (The Legend of Al, John and Jack) follows a trio of klutzy mobsters fumbling through the Italian crime underworld in the late '50s. The film begins at a drive-in movie where Al (Aldo Baglio), John (Giovanni Storti), and Jack (Giacomo Poretti) have rewired a car speaker in hopes of catching incriminating evidence on a fellow gangster's plans. Things go awry, however, when Al gets short-term amnesia from an inadvertent electrical shock. His compatriots take it upon themselves to re-inform him of his role in the accidental murder of one of their boss' old friends. In order to avoid death themselves, the three inept mobsters must concoct a plan to earn his forgiveness and prove their loyalty. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aldo Baglio, Giacomo Poretti, (more)
- 1997
- NR
Cuca Canals and director Bigas Luna (Jamon, Jamon) adapted Didier Decoin's novel, winner of the Goncourt Prize, for this period film, a Spanish-French-Italian co-production. French foundry worker Horty (Oliver Martinez), married to Zoe (Romane Bohringer), wins a competition of strength. His prize is a trip to witness the Titanic's launch from Southhampton. At his hotel room, Marie (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon) tells him that she is a Titanic chambermaid with nowhere to stay. Although she sleeps in his bed, they don't have sex. When Horty awakens, she's gone. Later, he spots a photographer taking her picture and buys the photograph. Horty returns to France, where he hears rumors that his wife Zoe has been sleeping with the foundry boss. After his drinking buddies find the photo of Marie, they ask him about her, and he begins to fabricate a tale -- seen in flashbacks -- of his encounters with Marie, a story which increases in eroticism as he retells it night after night with increasing theatrical flourishes and embellishments. Southhampton scenes were actually filmed in Trieste. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Olivier Martinez, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, (more)
- 1994
A jaded TV host falls in love with a paraplegic in this Italian comedy. The romance begins after Gepy Fuxas, the host of a popular reality show, is attacked on the air by an irate audience member in a wheel chair. The attacker, Arianna, is upset that he so readily exploits the pain of others. Gepy, who tries to defend himself, draws scathing criticism from his fans. His show is immediately cancelled and he finds himself alone and friendless. His life no longer has meaning. Arianna, feeling guilty, meets with him to try and smooth things over. Thus begins their gradual friendship and eventual love affair. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carlo Verdone, Asia Argento, (more)
- 1985
Not a French western, Cowboy is actually a gritty contemporary cop drama. Aldo Maccione stars as Inspector Cesar Cappucino, known throughout Nice as "Le Cowboy" because of his gonzo round-em-up techinique. Right now, Cappucino is hot on the trail of a drug cartel in the South of France. He does what he can from headquarters, then is summoned to clean up another dope ring in Paris. The dual-plot structure of Cowboy suggests that the film was intended as two one-hour TV dramas. Featured in the cast is Renee St. Cyr, the mother of director Georges Lautner. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aldo Maccione, Renée Saint-Cyr, (more)
- 1984
In an unsuccessful attempt to adapt the "Junior" cartoon strip by Georges Wolinski to a live-action movie, director Patrick Schulmann has been unable to capture the tension he first poses between a father (Aldo Maccione), once involved in the 1968 May student demonstrations, and a son (Junior, played by Riton Liebman) who is a buttoned-down conservative. One of the scenes with unrealized potential is when both father and son separately try to extricate a young man from his unwanted job at a brothel. As in some other adaptations from cartoons, the actors are unable to get past the limitations of the script. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aldo Maccione, Andréa Ferréol, (more)
- 1982
- PG
This French comedy (subtitled in English) stars director Pierre Richard as a timid man who, upon falling in love with the perfect woman, decides to take a class to help him gain confidence. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide
Voluptuous screen siren Edwige Fenech headlines this bawdy comedy about an Italian policewoman recruited to help take down a powerful crime boss. Try as they might, the authorities just can't seem to slap Italian crime boss Big John (Aldo Maccione) with any charges that stick. Leave it to American FBI Agent Maccarone to notice that Italian policewoman Gianna (Fenech) and her assistant Alvaro Tarallo (Alvaro Vitali) bear an uncanny resemblance to Big John's girlfriend Pupa and his bodyguard Joe Dodiciomicidi. Now, in order to bust Big John for good, Agent Maccarone recruits Gianna and Alvaro to infiltrate the organization and gather evidence. Little does Agent Maccarone realize that his ingenious plan has one fatal flaw; his trusty doubles have a penchant for getting into trouble, and by the time their mission is finished New York City will never be the same again. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- 1981
Just as a man (Aldo Maccione) is enjoying his fantasies of being another "Agent 007" in bed with a voluptuous, intelligent co-spy, the unsuspecting dreamer is mistaken for a real spy and shipped off to Tunisia where he has to carry out a true-life mission. Unfortunately, the real spy is a flamboyant homosexual (Aldo Maccione again) and the confusion between the two characters adds up to some slapstick moments in this 007 spoof. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Aldo Maccione, Edwige Fenech, (more)
- 1980
In this routine, provincial Italian comedy, sex and jealousy take center stage. Lorenzo (Renato Pozzetto) is the cubby mayor of a small town who is both blessed and plagued by a sexy wife (Gloria Guida). Although his wife is faithful, he is not sure of that and invents ways to prevent any man from misbehaving with her. Meanwhile, Arrigo is the town's notorious playboy, and everyone gets suspicious when he starts paying frequent visits to the mayor's house. The question no one considers is: which half of the married couple is Arrigo pursuing? ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Renato Pozzetto, Gloria Guida, (more)
- 1979
In this drama, a call girl tries to break into the underworld. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1979
- R
Pierre Richard directs and stars in this comedy about a ghost writer employed by a successful comic. He assumes the comic's identity and talks his way into a joint venture with an Italian screen star. The two travel to Tunisia to work on their collaboration and experience romantic and professional comic mishaps. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Richard, Aldo Maccione, (more)
- 1978
Though they are surprisingly ill-suited for their chosen vocation of thievery, the three men (Aldo Maccione, Charles Gerard and Julien Guiomar) in this story are sufficiently charming to intrigue the wife (Mireille Darc) of a police inspector (Georges Wilson) who is persecuting them based on his mistaken belief that they are involved in more serious crimes. Indeed, in this comedy she is so taken with them that she goes out on a few capers with them, including one which sets them up for life, enabling them to retire in the tropics, far outside the inspector's jurisdiction. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mireille Darc, Aldo Maccione, (more)
- 1977
In this comedy, Pierre (Pierre Richard) is a timid cashier in a Parisian bank who has grown obsessed with getting to know a beautiful woman (Mimi Coutellier). Based on her stylishness, exquisite manner, and the places she frequents, he assumes she must be a movie star, a model, or an heiress. However, he can't even say "hello" without clamming up. None of the psychological treatments he has sought have been of any use to him. His therapist Aldo (Aldo Maccione) becomes his friend and volunteers to help him overcome his handicap. His increasingly frustrated friend drives around Paris with him, coaching him (unsuccessfully) at numerous potential encounter situations. Eventually he finds that the girl he has been following is named Agnes, and far from having come from a wealthy background, she was a clerk in a small shop who has been enjoying the proceeds from a prize. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Pierre Richard, Aldo Maccione, (more)
