Mariangela Melato Movies

Panni Sporchi is a satiric comedy from veteran director Mario Monicelli about the public and private squabbles of a family-owned cough drop company. The Razzi family's business has been the economic backbone of a small Northern Italian city for years, but when Amedo (Paolo Bonacelli), the aging head of the company, is fast-talked into financing an expensive commercial set in ancient Rome by his nephew Camillo (Francesco Guzzo), war breaks out among the family. Furio (Michele Placido), husband of Amedo's daughter (Mariangela Melato) and second in command of the company, is outraged at the cost of the spot and the bad publicity it receives; he's even more upset when Amedo drops dead and the inept Camillo is handed control of the business. Panni Sporchi stars several noted Italian comic actors, many of whom have worked with Monicelli before; the cast also includes Gigi Proietti and Ornella Muti. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Choreographer and filmmaker Herbert Ross directs the romantic backstage drama The Dancers, which features a production of Giselle by the American Ballet Theatre. Mikhail Baryshnikov stars as macho lead dancer Tony Sergoyev, the director of a ballet company beginning a production of Giselle in southern Italy. Tony has been involved with several of the dancers in his troupe, but has recently become close to Contessa (Mariangela Melato). When American teenager Lisa (Julia Kent) arrives, he becomes attracted to her during rehearsals. The conclusion involves the final production, with Tony in the role of Albrecht. Tony's other lover, Francesca (Alessandra Ferri), plays the role of Giselle, while cynical Nadine (Leslie Browne) plays the role of the Queen of the Wilis. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

Giuseppe Bertolucci (younger brother of Bernardo Bertolucci) has created a movie unusual for its all-female cast of well-known Italian actresses and for a script that gives them latitude to develop their individual characters. The story is about Laura (Lina Sastri) a young terrorist who commits a rash act of cold-blooded murder which introduces the other women in this story. Laura is in Venice when she kills a judge and a gang member who was vacillating in his commitment. The dead terrorist's mother (Rosanna Podesta) and sister (Giulia Boschi) attend his funeral in Avellino, an area devastated after a severe earthquake -- a particularly dramatic backdrop for a funeral. Back home, Laura's former nanny (Alida Valli) still lives with the family and is as astute as ever -- she figures out what Laura has done and leaves for good. Laura's mother (Lea Massari) is not as perceptive about her own daughter and can hardly believe Laura has done anything wrong, even after the police come to take her away. The effect this has on the devoted mother is totally devastating. Meanwhile, Laura is brought before a judge (Mariangela Melato) for questioning, made all the more difficult because of her critical emotional state and the judge's own personal problems. The wisdom of Laura's confession and the many "secrets" she reveals is another matter entirely. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

As a young boy, Tommaso's (Gerard Darier) interest in women and in his cousin Marta (Mariangela Melato) in particular, inspired him to bore peep holes into her wall and vicariously partake of her forbidden private life, including her wedding day. Time goes by, and after living through many changes going on around him, Tommaso has grown up and is now a soldier in the military. When he sees cousin Marta at a train station one day, he jumps off his train, talks to her for awhile, and tries to give her some strength to face the various problems in her life. Both Marta and Tommaso suffer deceptions over the next crucial period -- Marta becomes estranged from her husband, and her daughter is more distant with each passing day. Tommaso's faith in humanity is dealt a few sharp blows as he watches a friend stoop to embezzlement and then is seduced by the same friend's wife. The youthful dreams of both cousins seem to deteriorate with time, perhaps leading the way to another stage in the "growing up" process. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

The time is WW II in the Emilia-Romagna countryside in Italy, and an American pilot's plane has just broken down near the farmhouse of a middle-aged widow, Francesca (Mariangela Melato) and her three young daughters. The widow has recently come back to her family's land and is picking up where she left off with long-lost friends and neighbors. The downed pilot, Ray (Anthony Franciosa), finds a safe refuge in the widow's farmhouse -- he needs a place to hide until the war ends and it is safe for him to join his military unit. Ray's presence brings out the wild dreams Francesca and her daughters and friends have had about a magical America, a country celebrated in song and dance -- not just in American films, but right there in the farmhouse and its vicinity. Ray is regaled with hearty interpretations of "Pennies from Heaven" and "Jeepers Creepers", and the neighbors and daughters have a riotous good time with the dancing and singing. In-between the light-hearted portrayal of America and its image, Francesca begins to fall in love with Ray, while suffering her own personal anguish as she tries to hide the death of her husband from her three daughters by saying he is in America. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

This farce features Jodi Foster, Catherine Deneuve, and Ugo Tognazzi. Tersina (Foster) is a pregnant teen whose parents want her married, pronto. Cerquette (Tognazzi) is an insurance man who wears a chastity belt to keep him from ravishing the two women he desires. A pair of bachelors liven up the action (Michele Placido and Luigi Proietti) which is not easy. Except for the introductory scenes, all of the action takes place in the dressinig (and undressing) room of a beach house. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

A surreal and often abstruse tale about a woman and her innermost feelings, Oggetti Smarriti starts out with Marta (Mariangela Melato) and her husband taking a long train ride to go pick up their daughter from grandmother's house. Theory and practice are immediately at odds when the husband gets off the train to buy something to read and it starts chugging out of the station. Marta jumps off to go look for him, but he thinks the train has left with her on it, and he leaves the station. As Marta wanders around in search of her husband, she comes across a German (Bruno Ganz) whom she thinks she met while still a child. The two strike up a relationship, and Marta indulges in both alcohol and drugs on her way to falling in love with the mysterious "stranger." Stranger yet is the continuation of her saga as she may -- or may not -- find herself at last. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

Marco is a composer and singer who has somehow survived a suicide attempt. As he recovers, he attempts to find out when his political protest music began to lose its impact with the young. He was the "in" singer in 1968, a true rebel, admired and emulated. Now, just 10 years later, he is a has-been. He gains admittance into the bedrooms of a romantic threesome living in the house next to his, but their inarticulateness, or perhaps his own, maddens him, and he commits a heinous crime. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

In this zany romantic comedy, a financially comfortable woman, bored with her life, follows the intriguing sound of a saxophone to its source, which is being played by Renato Pozzetto. Imagining him to be poor, she seeks to win his heart not only by her ardor, but by a judicious use of her checkbook. Happily, even though he is not impressed with her finances, he finds the prospect of a romantic alliance acceptable. As the main story progresses, many humorous vignettes throw a surreal light on everyday life. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi

Set at an indeterminate time in the near future, this routine, well-acted drama by Elio Petri tackles favorite Italian topics: religion and politics. A bit of macabre fantasy is added to the mix, but the end product remains somewhat muddled. Don Gaetano (Marcello Mastroianni) is a priest who is supervising a group of Christian Democrats on a religious retreat. The objective is to help these politicians purify their past wrongdoings, no matter how large or small, and live closer to God. The retreat takes place in a concrete bunker with plenty of small rooms for contemplation and icons set here and there to offer inspiration. Once the retreat begins, the politicos alarmingly begin to die off one by one. Don Gaetano wants them to get closer to God but did he mean that close? ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi

The director of this film, Fernando Arrabal, himself an exile from Spain, tells a story which takes place during the time of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). A woman nearly suffers rape by the nephew of the local nobleman but is rescued by the man's son. The boy is an artist whose works are too modern and rebellious, even blasphemous, for his conservative countrymen. After fighting for some time with the Republican cause, both of them are arrested by the Franco faction. The boy is tortured and disfigured by his captors, but his love for the woman restores him to full life. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi