By Lee Pfeiffer
Italy may have suffered immeasurably during WWII but in the post-war era the Italian cinema entered a renaissance period with world-acclaimed directors making the country the epicenter of the European new wave films. The Italian cinema was still in vigorous condition in the 1960s and the nation's most glamorous actors and actresses became international stars. In the wake of Fellini's La Dolce Vita and 8 1/2, even mainstream American audiences that were generally immune to the charms of foreign films became smitten by the Italian touch. One of the most unheralded Italian imports from this era ironically boasted one of the most impressive casts. Made in Italy was released in America in 1967 with an all-star cast that included Virna Lisi, Sylva Koscina, Anna Magnani, Alberto Sordi and Nino Manfredi. The movie, which has been released as one of Sony's burn-to-order DVD titles, is a madcap look at a disparate number of Italians who are all experiencing something chaotic during the course of a single day. The movie, directed and co-written by Nanni Loy (The Four Days of Naples), runs at a fairly manic clip and certainly contains some moments of inspired comedy. However, the screenplay is woefully under-written with some of the vignettes (which are all unrelated) ending abruptly on an unsatisfactory note. Not helping matters is the penchant for dubbing films during this era, an absurd practice that was designed to increase boxoffice dollars but resulted in plenty of voices that didn't seem to match the actors on screen. This film is no exception, with only a few instances in which the dubbing can be deemed satisfactory. In most cases, it's poor and woefully distracting. The dozens of vignettes have varying running times and are primarily designed to look at how every day life in Italy impacts its citizens from all walks of life. Loy gets a bit Felliniesque by making some social commentary along the way. In one sequence, a group of bored, super wealthy socialites decide to "slum it" by eating in a crowded restaurant that is popular with the working class. The snobs arrogantly laugh at how they are immersed with those of lower social status in much the same way as visitors to a zoo might be amused by the antics of some exotic animals. In the most poignant sequence, a middle-aged out of work man desperately seeks employment and goes off on a job interview for a position of laborer. The hopes and enthusiasm of his wife at the prospect of his finding a job is genuinely touching even though the episode ends on a downbeat note. The only consistent characters seen throughout are a group of bawdy Italians who are aboard a flight to Sweden where they apparently have been engaged to do some unspecified work. The scenes of these obnoxious men clowning on the plane are routinely unfunny and the payoff is even weaker when they arrive in Sweden only to find it a gray, humorless place. The funniest segment involves Alberto Sordi as a philanderer who is caught in the act with his mistress by his wife- only to slickly present a defense of his actions that is designed to make him appear to be the victim of his wife's uncaring behavior. Another funny segment involves Anna Magnani trying to simply walk her family to a local ice cream parlor only to have to endanger everyone's lives by trying to cross the lanes of non-stop traffic that resembles a racetrack. The premise is very funny but, again, the script ends on a bizarre note, as though the writers couldn't envision a satisfying conclusion. The film's main attributes are the superbly photographed scenes of various exotic Italian cities and other locations, all set to a jaunty and delightful musical score.
Made in Italy is a mixed bag. There is inspired humor in small does along with some poignant social commentary, but all too often the segments are as leaden as a mountainous plate of lasagna.
The DVD transfer is excellent but there are no bonus extras.
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