Maddalena Maggi & Barbora Bobulova in "Il Siero della Vanità" [2004, Italy]

Alex Infascelli's 2004 thriller "Il Siero della Vanità" [Eng. Title: The Vanity Serum] is meant to be a scathing attack on reality TV and how they play to the gallery for ratings and massage the ego of celebrities. He gets that message through in the film, but as a thriller, it has too many loose ends to make it work. Some writers think they can get way by showing people getting into trouble by doing stupid things - but it is difficult to believe it if characters who're supposedly intelligent throw common sense out of the window in the process.

It is however technically well made even if there's nothing special to say about it. I'm just posting this for the record as there is also brief nudity in the film that not many may be aware of.

After some random celebrities go missing, the Police ask for the services of Lucia Allasco - a former Officer and ex-wife of the Assistant Commissioner. After an injury that happened during her last case, she now has a permanent limp and is also a recovering alcoholic. Lucia discovers that all the missing had appeared together in a chat show ten years ago, and tries to track down the others who also appeared in it - obviously to protect them. In the process she lands herself in trouble. Lucia is played by Margherita Buy.




Compilation: Maddalena Maggi and Barbora Bobulova



Scene Guide:

• Pop singer Esther Bonanni with her lover and later getting in and out of shower, played by Maddalena Maggi.
• Very brief nudity - former Miss Italy Azzurra Rispoli at a party, and later after shower, played by Barbora Bobulova.

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