Monday, October 27, 2008

Lunedi Lunacy

In the 1950s the Italian market was flooded with things "Americano" and many young man had dreams of being just like their American movie heroes. The brilliant Alberto Sordi had great fun with this in Un Americano in Roma - poor Nadno worships everything Americano and even threatens suicide unless someone pays his way to New York.

On his way home from a Hopalong Cassidy movie he practices his gun slinging on a few unsuspecting Romans.



Sordi started his career in the unintentionally funny (extras with wristwatches, telephone poles at the Battle of Zama) Fascist epic Scipione l'africano in 1937 and ended it almost 70 years later as one of Italy's best loved performers. I only wish I had been able to get a subtitled version of this - but I find the situation and the physical performances really don't need words all that much.

27 ottobre - San Frumenzio

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Some things don't require translation..

sageweb said...

That guy was handsome too.