Dino Risi Movies
Italian director and screenwriter Dino Risi first worked as a psychiatrist before entering cinema as a film critic and screenwriter. In the early '40s, he briefly worked as an assistant director; toward the end of WWII, Risi was detained in Switzerland where he studied under filmmaker Jacques Feyder. When he returned to Italy, he began making short documentaries, and by the early '50s had completely abandoned psychiatry to direct feature films, where he was noted for his ability to use Neapolitan-style humor to comment upon social situations in Italy, most particularly the plight of the poor. In addition to directing, Risi co-authored the stories and screenplays for most of his films. He died at age 91 in 2008. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide- 1989
- PG
Sophia Loren and Sydney Penny appear here as a mother and daughter fleeing the dangers of urban Rome during WW II. They head to the mountains but find things are far from safe. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1987
In this uninspired drama, Teresa (Serena Grandi) considers marriage to a wealthy German baron. She agrees to marry him but has reservations when she walks to the altar. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Serena Grandi, Luca Barbareschi, (more)
- 1984
In this low-brow satire, French comedian Coluche exploits his talents for comic vulgarity in his role as the 10th-century King Dagobert I. The king's intestinal and sexual problems loom large as he survives an attack on his royal caravan then barely makes it to Rome to personally give thanks to the Pope. After he arrives at the Vatican, he becomes involved in the battle between two contenders for the papacy (Ugo Tognazzi in both roles) and has to face the machinations of a ruthless Byzantine princess (Carole Bouquet). With humor that consistently hits below the belt, and an ending that clashes with the rest of the film, this satire will not play the same to all audiences. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Coluche, Ugo Tognazzi, (more)
- 1981
Just when life was deep into a well-hewn rut for Nino Conti (Marcello Mastroianni) and the socialite he married, he runs into an old, impoverished charwoman (Romy Schneider) on a bus. She later gets in touch with him by telephone and lets him know that she is the very same Anna he had loved two decades earlier. Ghosts of the past start to haunt Nino in more ways than one, as he remembers the times he shared with Anna. In flashbacks to those years, the film wends its way to the final conjuncture of past and present phantoms -- poking fun at upper-class society along the way. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Marcello Mastroianni
- 1980
Director Dino Risi's guns seem to misfire in this long and cliched diatribe at the filmmaking industry. Antonio (Renato Pozzetto) is an average aspiring thespian from a remote area of Italy who heads to Rome and the film studios to seek both fame and fortune. Instead, he ends up bilked by an unscrupulous agent, exploited by gorgeous actress Cinzia (Edwige Fenech), and regularly hit on by a gay acting coach. Antonio does get some bit parts in several films but that does not necessarily guarantee his future. His misfortunes carry commonly held stereotypes to the limit, and they are just the beginning. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Renato Pozzetto, Edwige Fenech, (more)
- 1980
- R
Sunday Lovers is a fitfully amusing study of weekend romantic techniques as practiced in four different cultures. Each episode was filmed by a separate unit in the country where the story was set. "The French Method" (directed by Eduoard Molinaro) finds a businessman (Lino Ventura) trying to secure an important contract through the sexual allure of his secretary (Catherine Salviat)--only to give up the whole enterprise when he discovers that the secretary would be more valuable as a business partner. "An Englishman's Home" (directed by Bryan Forbes) is all about a chauffeur (Roger Moore) who poses as his boss in order to impress a series of sexy stewardesses. "Armando's Notebook" (directed by Dino Risi) finds a middle-aged Italian husband (Ugo Tognazzi) arranging an affair when his wife leaves town. And "Skippy" stars Gene Wilder (who also directed the segment) as an American psychiatric patient who falls in love with the equally neurotic Priscilla Barnes. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roger Moore, Lino Ventura, (more)
- 1979
Dear Father and Dear Papa are the English-language titles for the Italian domestic drama Caro Papa. Vittorio Gassman plays a flint-hearted industrialist who thinks as little of destroying his business partner as he does of cheating on his wife. Gassman's son is an apparently weak-willed lad, who may or may not have become involved in the "Red Brigade". When Gassman learns that his son has been appointed to execute someone known only as "P", he assumes the victim is his ex-partner. Only as he is being gunned down does the industrialist realize that "P" stands for Papa. But that's not the end of Dear Father; there's still a viciously ironic coda before the final fade-out. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vittorio Gassman, Aurore Clément, (more)
- 1979
Villa Serena is a retirement home for aging theatrical and vaudeville performers in this film, which stars Ugo Tognazzi as its newest inmate, Picchio, a former comedy great. There, he meets and falls in love with the lovely young attendant Renata (Ornella Muti), and goes off with her to Rome for the "first affair" of his retirement. However, he doesn't "go gently into that good night," but longs to mount a revival of his career, and is devastated to discover that his charms both as a performer and as a man are no longer what they once were. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ugo Tognazzi, Ornella Muti, (more)
- 1978
- R
This Italian black comedy is comprised of nine short stories all related to the theme that most men are selfish cads. At the 1978 Oscars, the film was nominated for Best Foreign film. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1977
When the young would-be artist Tino arrives in Venice to live at the house of his uncle while he studies art, he soon discovers that his Austrian/Venetian uncle's house is packed with mystery -- there are abandoned rooms from which strange sounds emanate. Eventually, he is told that his uncle's insane brother is being kept in rooms on the top floor, and only Uncle Fabio (who is seldom home) is permitted to visit them. However, youth and curiosity impel him onward to even more discoveries. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vittorio Gassman, Catherine Deneuve, (more)
- 1977
In this drama, Temistocle Orimbelli (Ugo Tognazzi) is a middle-aged man with a profound appreciation for womankind -- an appreciation that does not extend to Cleofe (Garbiella Giacobbe) his dried up old shrew of a wife. He is much taken with the charms of his sister-in-law Matilde (Ornella Muti), who is a widow. The attraction appears mutual, but he has first to overcome the obstacle of wifely suspicion in order to consummate the union. Eventually, he is able to appear at his boat at the same time as the lovely Matilde, and what had begun as a simple assignation turns into a complex tragedy. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ugo Tognazzi, Ornella Muti, (more)
- 1974
Before Al Pacino ever picked up a blind man's cane in the 1992 production of Scent of A Woman, Vittorio Gassman played a blind army captain in the 1974 Italian film Profumo di Donna, based on a novel by Giovanni Arpino. The earlier film unquestionably inspired the later one, though they differ significantly. The Captain, accompanied by Ciccio (Alessandro Momo), who has been assigned to him by the army, is on his way from Turin to Naples to meet with an army compatriot who was also disfigured in the same military incident. Unknown to his aide, the Captain means to fulfill a suicide pact there. While they journey, the captain asks Ciccio to help him spot beautiful women. Unsatisfied with the boy's descriptions, he uses his nose instead, claiming that he can smell a beautiful woman. The dashing blind military man enjoys considerable success with women. During their journey, he carries with him a picture of his beloved Sara (Agostina Belli), whom he could not bear to have see him disfigured and helpless. The suicide pact is eventually thwarted, Sara enters the picture, and the boy Ciccio does some much-needed growing up. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Vittorio Gassman, Alessandro Momo, (more)
- 1973
How Funny Can Sex Be? is an eight-episode anthology film about love, sex and marriage in contemporary, mid-'70s Italy. Some of the segments--particularly those featuring Laura Antonelli and Giancarlo Giannini--are fun, but just as many fall flat. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
- 1973
In this Italian comedy/thriller, a group of politically motivated bank robbers led by Fabrizio (Oliver Reed) escape into the countryside with industrialist Giulio (Marcello Mastroianni) and a toothsome young woman (Carol Andre) as hostages. Holed up in a rural mansion, they indulge in philosophical musings and crises of conscience while the police close in. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1971
Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni star in this Italian comedy. The story begins with Loren as Valerie, a woman whose suicide attempt, prompted by a romantic disappointment, is thwarted by Don Mario (Mastroianni), a priest whom she called before she lost consciousness. She immediately falls in love with the priest. He is much taken with her beauty and considers asking for a dispensation to marry her, which encourages her greatly. The priest asks for advice, which ranges from the sublime to the ridiculous (castration). Meanwhile, he is promoted to be a Monsignor. At the same time, Valerie learns that she is pregnant, though it is not clear who the father is. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1971
In Nome Del Popolo Italiano (In the Name of the Italian Pope) represents the darker edge of Italian filmmaker Dino Risi's satiric sensibilities. Ugo Tognazzi stars as the magistrate of a prosperous Italian community. Completely incorruptible, Tognazzi goes after a crooked industrialist, played by Vittorio Gassman. The film details Tognazzi's subtle descent into toadyism. Dino Risi had often utilized the services of Ugo Tognazzi and Vittorio Gassman in the past, but seldom with such cutting, vicious effectiveness as in In Nome del Popolo Italiano. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1969
Giordano (Lino Capolicchio) is a young man from Milan who accepts a ride from a married American couple sightseeing in Italy. The husband is an older and worldly professor of archaeology while his wife is interested in exploring living things. The young hitchhiker is seduced by the beautiful wife, while her husband continues to gaze at ancient ruins. Giordano is also scrutinized by a local homosexual who would love to take him home. When he reaches his destination, he sees the couple drive off with another man on the following day in this mildly erotic travel tale. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Lino Capolicchio, Janet Agren, (more)
- 1968
A romance between a young woman factory worker and a barber is stopped when her parents raise protests over her relationship with the man. When rumors of the romance run rampant in the small town, she leaves for Rome. She takes a job as an assistant to a deaf-mute tailor and eventually accepts his proposal of marriage. The barber attempts suicide and is hospitalized. His depression is cured when he wins the lottery and he travels to Rome to reclaim his old love. They rekindle their romance and plan the demise of her husband by planting a bomb in the stove. The explosion miraculously restores the hearing and speech of the intended victim. The miracle prompts the husband to enter a monastery and help those with the disabilities that he himself overcame in the explosion. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nino Manfredi, Pamela Tiffin, (more)
