Venantino Venantini Movies

Writer/director Samuel Benchetrit takes the helm for this laid-back crime comedy that weaves together four stories which all eventually convene at a roadside diner. Franck (Edouard Baer) is a petty criminal who is currently pondering the prospect of holding up a remote diner. When observant waitress Suzie (Anna Mouglalis) eventually realizes that Franck has more than a meal on his mind, she reveals that she too had considered robbing the place until getting disheartening peak at the anemic cash register. In the second story, desperate criminals Leon (Bouli Lanners) and Paul (Serge Lariviere) kidnap the daughter of a wealthy businessman in hopes of earning a tidy ransom, but soon find themselves forced to act as surrogate parents when the young girl is revealed to be suicidal. Later, after two aging rock stars (Alain Bashung and Arno) discuss their careers over a meal at the diner, four former gangsters smuggle an old friend out of the hospital for a nostalgic trip to their former hideout, only to discover that the familiar log cabin has long since been razed and replaced with a modest diner that provides no means for lying low. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

True love, motorcycle daredevils, and alien visitation all find their way into this wildly imaginative fantasy, written and directed by Didier Poiraud and his brother Thierry Poiraud, a pair of comic artists who adapted the story from their own work. James Bataille (Jason Flemyng) is in love with Concia (Vanessa Paradis), a chanteuse whose father, Bosco (Jean-Pierre Marielle), runs the only nightspot in the tiny town where they live. The mechanically inclined Bataille attempts to stage an elaborate motorcycle stunt to impress Concia, but when it goes sour, he ends up in prison with a 133-year sentence. Desperate to help Concia and raise some money, Bataille escapes from behind bars to make an appointment to fix the car of music biz tycoon Allan Chiasse (Benoît Poelvoorde). Chiasse's timing may be fortuitous, as Concita is soon to take part in the town's annual talent show, though he's expected to face tough competition from a very unusual dog act. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Martin Sheen stars as an American newsman in Rome who begins to investigate the appearance of several corpses found throughout Europe with their hands cut off. He soon uncovers not only plots of plutonium theft, but also of nuclear arms deals and dark political schemes. ~ Kristie Hassen, All Movie Guide

Jennifer (Nicola Warren) and her husband, Fred (Andy J. Forest), seek out their old lovers for another fling in this erotic drama. Fred hooks up with the prostitute Rosalba (Francesca Dellera), while Jennifer returns to the arms of the handsome pimp Ciro (Luigi Laezza). The unfaithful couple return to each other after the affairs prove to be less satisfying then the memory of their initial experiences. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide

Filmed on location in France, Italy, Greece, and Egypt, Innocents Abroad was adapted by Dan Wakefield from the 1869 book by Mark Twain. The Twain original was an amusing, semi-satiric account of the author's Grand Tour of Europe and the Holy Land in 1867. Most of the humor derived from the contrast between the iconoclastic Twain and the tacked-on "reverence" of his fellow tourists. The cast includes Craig Wasson as Twain, David Ogden Stiers as a ship's doctor, Barry Morse as Captain Duncan, and-best of all--Luigi Proiette as the glib, effusive tour guide. Innocents Abroad premiered May 9, 1983 on PBS' Great Performances series. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cycle-flick habitue Greydon Clark warmed the director's chair for Final Justice. Joe Don Baker stars as a Texas sheriff attempting to stem corruption in his own community. Failing this, the sheriff (Baker) is compelled to follow the mob perpetrators all the way to Italy. It is hardly uplifting entertainment, but it certainly delivers the goods in terms of bloody action. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The French My Other Husband (Attention! Une Femme Peut en Cacher une Autre) would eventually suffer the indignity of an American TV-movie remake, which will go unnamed here to protect the guilty. The original film is a sprightly vehicle for the delectable Miou-Miou. Thanks to her resourcefulness and spunk, Alice (Miou-Miou) manages to get two well-paying jobs in two separates cities. She also acquires two husbands, airline pilot Philippe (Roger Hanin) and school teacher Vincent (Eddy Mitchell), and three children unevenly distributed between them. Our Heroine is found out when Philippe's schedule is changed and he chances to meet Vincent. Both men accept the situation philosophically, but a frantic Alice feels an explanation is necessary. It is that explanation that provides the heart and soul of this irresistible little film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Primarily a showcase for the gory special-effects artistry of Gianetto de Rossi, this revolting horror film stars Giovanni Lombardo Radice (also known as "John Morghen") as a drug-dealer who comes to the Amazon jungle from New York looking for a cache of stolen emeralds. He joins some American college students and soon introduces them to his special lifestyle, raping a native girl, then beating a young Indio senseless before gouging out his eyeball with a knife. Naturally, the local cannibals don't take too well to this treatment, so they cut off Radice's penis with a machete, gouge out his eye, then scalp him and eat his brain. Deciding that his companions are also to blame, the natives hang a young woman by impaling her breasts on meat hooks while her sorrowful companion sings "Red River Valley." Eventually, one woman gets back to New York, where she reads a dissertation on cannibalism to earn her PhD. Cult filmmaker Umberto Lenzi really outdid himself with this bloody spectacle, which maintains a consistent air of cruelty with a non-stop procession of beatings, rapes, real-life animal slaughter, larva-chewing, genital-chopping, cannibalism and the infamous meathook scene. Definitely for acquired tastes only, this nauseatingly effective shocker features a brief appearance by adult-film star Richard Bolla as a New York policeman. ~ Robert Firsching, All Movie Guide

The alluring Laura Gemser reprises the role of legendary erotic adventuress Emanuelle in this scintillating softcore drama from director Joe D'Amato. Globetrotting journalist Emanuelle has discovered evidence of an international prostitution ring, a clandestine organization that sells beautiful young girls to the highest bidder. Now, as Emanuelle navigates her way through Africa, ventures straight into the black heart of New York City, and drifts through the plush bordellos of Southern California to research her story, her unbridled lust takes over. From Sapphic passions to group sex and even an encounter with a transvestite kung-fu master, this proves to be Emanuelle's most debauched adventure to date. The final collaboration between notorious Italian director D'Amato and smoldering sex symbol Gemser, Emanuelle and the White Slave Trade also features Ely Galleani, Gabriele Tinti, and Venantino Venantini. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

This French farce depicts Hitler as the sort of man who issues challenges to opposing countries: win a soccer game against us, or be invaded. All goes invasion-ward until the French send three screwy guys to kidnap the tyrant. At this point, things become incredibly bizarre, as the kidnapper's schemes land them on the German team. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

In this horror movie, residents of a remote Scottish town fight a strange and terrifying beast that has been gobbling them all up. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide