Mariangela Melato in "Travolti da un insolito destino nell'azzurro mare d'Agosto" [1974 Italy]

It's about time I started the filmography of Lina Wertmüller, one of Italy's finest female directors, the first woman to be nominated for an Academy Award for directing, and a fabulous exponent in the tradition of Commedia all'italiana - the bitter-sweet comedies from an era one could broadly call the second golden age of Italian cinema where social/political satire is infused into a tragicomic plot to drive home a message.

"Travolti da un insolito destino nell'azzurro mare d'Agosto" [Eng. Title: Swept Away by an Unusual Destiny in the Blue Sea of August, aka Swept Away] is the third in a set of films from the period that saw Ms. Wertmüller collaborate with Giancarlo Giannini and Mariangela Melato, each film dealing with the clash of capitalist and communist ideals in the changing political landscape of Italy of the time (the other two being "Film d'amore e d'anarchia" and "Mimì metallurgico ferito nell'onore"). All three are different films, but it is this one that won worldwide acclaim and even went on to be considered as a landmark in cinema. All three films are brilliant in their own unique way, even if we can retrospectively see the final one as a natural progression for themes explored in the earlier two films. One may also notice that Ms. Wertmüller has a quirky way of naming her films - most of her early films have unusually long titles. Wertmüller is famous for often fusing (triumphantly) two of her favourite subjects - sex with politics (and occasionally religion) to tell a story, and in the process has often prompted debate by pushing the envelope and justifying it by forcing us to look at it from different angles.

Storyline:
Raffaella Lanzetti, her rich industrialist hubby and friends from the north hire a yacht for a vacation in the Mediterranean. Apart from their sunbathing rituals and swimming, their topic of conversation often veers towards politics and how their class have to put up with the incompetent left-wing peasants in getting Italy to work. Overhearing their conversations and frothing at his mouth is deck hand Gennarino, an ardent communist. This doesn't go unnoticed by the bitchy Raffaella who revels in taunting him further on every occasion, be it the 'overcooked' pasta or reheated coffee.
One day after having overslept, Raffaella insists on being taken to a nearby beach for a swim despite warnings from the crew. Gennarino's objections are overruled and asked to take her on a dinghy, which develops engine trouble half way. After a night at sea, they eventually drift towards a deserted island.
Once there, Raffaella continues to pass orders to Gennarino, insulting him whenever she could. After one insult too many, he snaps, trades back some choice insults and splits off on his own. The power equation changes when Raffaella realises she needs him to survive in the island, and offers to compromise. But Gennarino is brought up 'the old way', one where women are subservient to men and waited upon. He demands the same from Raffaella, often smacking her around. After the initial culture shock and some vain resistance, Raffaella relents and even ends up washing his underpants. Gennarino's treatment of Raffaella begins to border on the misogynistic when he starts treating her as a slave - on one occasion even demanding her to take off her clothes. He nearly rapes her after catching up with a defiant Raffaella, but stops short by telling her that he would never impregnate a woman unless she offers herself willingly 'filled of passion'. That day nevertheless arrives, when Raffaella falls in love with his primal nature, and completely surrenders herself.
They begin to live a romantic dream, until one day a rescue boat arrives near their island. Despite Raffaella asking Gennarino not to send them any signal, he does, out of his own machismo, and also to test how much she loves him. But once they are rescued, it becomes plainly obvious that Raffaella, despite her genuine feelings for Gennarino is never going to forego her worldly comforts for a life in the wilderness...

About the film:
While much has been written about the film, many criticising the open depiction of violence against women, one must point out that the couple's relationship should be seen not at face value, but allegorically against a backdrop of the clash between left and right wing politics (whole governments changed every few months during this period), and the north-south divide in a country more starker than others - some of the words used by northerners to insult a southerner include 'Turk', 'Abyssinian', even 'Negro'. What also shocks some is that for a comedy, it reinforces stereotypes by making them too convincing, with accusations that Wertmüller has pandered to a predominantly male fantasy. Which couldn't be further from the truth, because she critiques both the protagonists in equal measure, even more so man's inability to adapt fast enough to a changing world. She is equally critical of the blind faith in communist ideologies among its followers - one mustn't separate the sexual tensions from the politics contained within the film. Performance wise, Giancarlo Giannini and Mariangela Melato scorch the screen in scenes that have by now become legend, even if Giannini is outrageously over the top in some scenes. Technically, the stunning cinematography by Ennio Guarnieri and team capture Sardinia at its sunniest best (even if it was apparently cold during many days of the shoot), and the editing is coherent and smooth despite using a multitude of short takes. And eroticism being of the mind, you'll know why this will also make an excellent 'date' film. This gem of a film is therefore Highly Recommended Viewing..!

 

Amazon.it DVD Link

About the DVD:
I recommend the above DVD for those who can follow Italian, because it contains a fascinating set of interviews from Lina Wertmüller and Mariangela Melato. They talk about the making of the film, the concept, the famous on-screen 'chemistry' between Ms. Melato and Giannini, and Wertmüller's desire to even make a sequel to this film! They jointly criticise Guy Ritchie and Madonna's more recent remake of the same, and cite possible reasons for it not being so successful. It is also a pleasure to see how Ms. Melato has aged gracefully over the years whilst retaining all her charm and sharp wit.




Compilation: Mariangela Melato and Giancarlo Giannini
There are only brief instances of nudity in the film, but it is more than compensated for by some of the most memorable erotic sequences captured in cinema. I've used some scattered edits that should make an ideal taster for those who like cerebrally sensual films. I won't bother explaining every scene captured - a lot of them are visual enough for non-Italian speakers. Except the last scene which requires a bit of explaining - because she loves him so much, Raffaella 'begs' Gennarino to deflower her where her virginity is still intact - by sodomising her :). What makes this scene extra special is the knowledge of a upper class woman pleading in her posh accent to an ignorant man who doesn't even know what the word 'sodomise' means - she had to guide him without resorting to the more 'common' terminology! Bitchy Raffaella is played by a classy Mariangela Melato in the prime of her youth, and the wild Gennerino by a handsome Giancarlo Giannini.



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Mariangela Melato & co in "Attenti al Buffone" [1975 Italy]

Writer and director Alberto Bevilacqua uses dark humour to highlight human frailties and the corrupting influence of power in the film, "Attenti al Buffone" [Eng. Title: Eye of the Cat]. The time around which this was made (1974-75), there was a lot of political upheaval in Italy and the world over, inevitably reflecting in its cinema. It may not have the mighty rage and despair of Pier Paolo Pasolini's "Salo o le 120 giornate di Sodoma" which also came out the same year, but it raises similar questions, and the film's chief villain Cesare would easily find himself in good company among the 'Duke' and 'President' from Salo.

Storyline:
Marcello, a musician returns home from a tour to find his wife Giulia and the kids have disappeared and the house a wreck. He will soon learn that Giulia had been 'persuaded' by Cesare, a powerful man who made his name during fascist rule, to have the marriage annulled, and marry him instead. Marcello, instead of rebelling against the outrage, goes with it - hoping that Giulia would of her own, change her mind. But it soon becomes clear Cesare has a personal score to settle with Marcello - and wants to truly defeat him. He humiliates Marcello repeatedly - on one occasion, bragging about having 'bought' his family, "I've taken possession of the only true harmony that you managed to compose - it was your masterpiece". Marcello is also required to fake a reason to church for the annulment - and claim he is impotent. The conversation between him and the church clerk about the matter is one of the more interesting passages of play, full of satire and wit. Giulia on the other hand seems to have had an unpleasant past, possibly working the streets and often being molested before meeting Marcello, who decides to marry her. She loves Marcello, but wants him to let her go so she could live by her instincts. The film becomes an ethical battle between Marcello with his high morals, and the vile 'Ras' Cesare, one that Marcello 'the jester' wins.

The only other film I've seen of Bevilacqua to date is his earlier film, "La Califfa". Among the two, "Attenti al Buffone" is the superior one, notwithstanding the classy presence of Romy Schneider in the latter. The direction, the screenplay (which also won a David), and the fabulous soundtrack of Ennio Morricone work very well this time. And besides, you have another classy actress appearing in this film as well - signora tutti italiani Mariangela Melato, who plays Giulia. My DVD is a fairly recent edition, digitally remastered from negative, and the colours and sound quality are pretty good. Recommended Viewing..!

Amazon DVD Link




Compilation: Mariangela Melato, Erika Blanc, Loredana Bertè, and Cristina Gaioni



Scene Guide:

• No nudity - a brief look-back at how Marcello met Giulia.
• Giulia is commanded by Cesare to strip naked. When she refuses, an angry Cesare rips her clothes off, but is soon gladdened to see she had shaved her nether regions, just as he had asked her to. "...just like a child - you see, we're both alike and our vulgarity, sublime - it'll be like doing it for the first time."
• His enthusiasm is however short-lived as Giulia walks off to spend the night with husband Marcello instead, who'd decided to pitch tent in Cesare's attic until the annulment formalities are finished (what the..?!). She asks him to treat her as a whore that she is, but is admonished by Marcello. While a body double was used for the previous nude scene, Mariangela Melato bares it all here, even giving us a brief frontal flash, which hardly ever happens - comfortable with Nino Manfredi (Marcello) with whom she'd worked before, but not so with Eli Wallach (Cesare), it seems..!
• An orgy organised to mourn a dead friend - true Etruscan style. All goes well for a while as the three women are shared around by Cesare and his friends. The bare bottomed girl with a French accent is Erika Blanc, the totally naked one on the staircase is Cristina Gaioni, and the other naked girl sitting on a guy's shoulder is Loredana Bertè - a popular singer during her day - Sei Bellissima..!
• The trouble starts when one of the guys demands Cesare share his woman Giulia too just like the rest - she had retired to her quarters. Cesare pleads her to restore his dignity by agreeing to have sex with his friends. He considers it shouldn't be too difficult because she'd already been around with other 'pigs and dogs' - and these are after all his friends..! :)

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Mariangela Melato & Sandra Julien in Claude Chabrol's "Nada" [1974 France]

It's Nouvelle Vague time - I'll start with Claude Chabrol's filmography with one of his lesser known films, "Nada" [Eng. Title: The Nada Gang], a crime thriller centred around a fictitious anarchist group who called themselves N.A.D.A.

This isn't your typical Chabrol - I was just lucky to have found it in one of my excellent box-sets. It is also not my favourite Chabrol, but I loved it nevertheless for its wit and satire. The fact that it also stars the classy Mariangela Melato, one of my favourite Italian actresses came as a pleasant surprise.

Claude Chabrol, one of the pioneers of the French New Wave cinema movement, is broadly compared to Hitchcock for his early suspense thrillers. But where he differs is by also giving social commentaries through his films, sometimes even taking precedence over the plot. He was a prolific filmmaker, and inevitably went through several phases of mediocrity and brilliance. But there's no denying the fact that whenever you think of legendary actresses like Stéphane Audran, Romy Schneider, and Isabelle Huppert, it is likely to be for one of their films directed by Claude Chabrol.

Synopsis:
Nada Gang members, led by academic Marcel kidnap the American ambassador for a ransom, but things take a different turn when the home ministry and an over-zealous superintendent decide to make an example out of them. Chabrol gives us a cynical insight into the way politics work, and also how even idealists compromise when the need arises. This is not exactly a great film, but certainly enjoyable as an action-packed crime drama.




 

Compilation: Sandra Julien and Mariangela Melato
There is only brief nudity in the film, but one of them is definitely worth checking out, that of the exceptionally sculpted beauty Sandra Julien (credited as Sandra Jullien). She plays a prostitute entertaining the ambassador when Nada members break in to spoil the party. The second is of the lovely Mariangela Melato who plays Veronique, one of the gang members, spending time with a veteran colleague she fancies, but who unfortunately struggles to perform on the given night. She gives only a brief flash of her breasts in this film, but not to worry - I will be posting here a legendary film by Ms. Melato pretty soon.





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