FilmCriticLalitRao
As a genre, "Italian comedy films" present a different facet of Italian cinema. These films are about an imperfect Italian society where people would like to get involved in self mockery (auto derision) as it enables them to correct weaknesses related to their behavior. "Big deal on Madonna Street" is about a small group of small time criminals from different backgrounds who make various plans to crack the safe of a pawnshop. After the end of second war world, Italy was in an absolute mess. Its ordinary people suffered the most as they did not have any jobs. This compelled many people to make quick money by stealing whatever that was available to be stolen. Apart from Dino Risi, Mario Monicelli is hailed by critics and public as the undisputed master of Italian comedy films. However, he mixed a great deal of dramatic elements in "I Soliti Ignoti". Monicelli shows how difficult things seem to appear when one is in the planning stages of a crime as people are beset by personal problems. Apart from depicting the universal sociological truth that "crime never pays", Monicelli's film also questions why some people do not want to work ?
OldAle1
The caper or heist film is surely the second most universally popular subset of the crime genre after the murder mystery, and I wonder if it was ever more in vogue, and more interesting artistically, than in the years after the huge success of Grisbi and Rififi. The late 50s and early 60s saw Melville's Bob le Flambeur, Topkapi, the early Pink Panther movies, and this fine neo-realist/comic effort from Monicelli, a director I've not heretofore been familiar with.It's a rather odd film, with many shifts in tone and a rambling plot that really doesn't coalesce into anything approaching the crime story you might expect until about halfway through. A group of small-time crooks and ex-cons, among them Peppe (Vittorio Gassman), Dante (Toto), and Tiberio (Marcello Mastroianni) hit upon a plan to rob a pawnbroker's safe by going through the wall of a neighboring apartment while the tenants are away; but they are clearly so incompetent and half-hearted about the whole thing that we never really believe they're going to get anywhere with their plans. The real drama to the story lies in wondering just when and how they'll get caught and who will go to jail; the real miracle will be if they get away without losing anything, let alone winning through.It's a portrait of a still desperately poor Italy just a few years after the war....there are still old, war-torn, decrepit buildings everywhere and the new ones we see going up are as ugly as anything being built in Poland at the time....everybody seems to know someone in prison or be a parolee him/herself.....so the comedy has a sombre edge to it, despite the presence of the farcical Toto, and the young and garrulous Mastroianni. Look for a very young Claudia Cardinale in a small role as well. Beautifully shot in a low-rent way in B/W by Gianni di Venanzo.
jotix100
Cosimo, a small time criminal in Rome, decides to steal a car one night. He is too inept to get the job done, attracting the attention of the patrolling police. Landing in jail, Cosimo hears of a possibility for a caper, the only problem is, he still has to serve his time. With the help of his friends, a search for a man to come forward to confess to the actual crime would clear Cosimo. After asking around, without much success, Peppe, another street hustler, and womanizer, decides to do it for the money. Unfortunately, he ends up in jail and Cosimo too. Jail time proves to be an opportunity for Peppe to learn about the caper Cosimo has been so carefully planning.When Peppe is released, he looks for the men that would have been involved with Cosimo in the original plan. They include an assortment of petty street criminals who have no experience in how to go about doing the job. Enter Dante, a master safe cracker, who for money, will teach the gang how to open the safe at one of Rome's pawn shops. The only problem with the plan, Dante will not participate, thus leaving everything to Peppe and the gang.Peppe, who has met Nicoletta, the niece of the occupants of the apartment he thought was empty, has a short romance with the woman, from whom he learns when will the two old ladies be away. Involved in the gang is Mario, who discovers the beautiful Carmelina, sister of Ferribotti, a Sicilian man who is guarding her chaste for a possible good marriage. There is Tiberio, a photographer, whose wife is serving jail time and he is now taking care of his infant son. Campanelle, an inept older man who is always hungry, completes the gang.When the big night for the heist arrives, everything that could gone wrong, and more, is what happens. The men have absolutely no clue as to what to do, therefore, their plan will never be put in action. At the end, the gang come out empty handed, not before Campanelle discovers a pot of pasta and chick peas, which he praises to the others, who soon share the dish with him, agreeing how delicious it was.Mario Monicelli, the director, who also collaborated with the screen play, seemed to be doing a funny take off on the more serious "Rififi", directed by Jules Dassin. That's where the comparison ends. Mr. Monicelli was more interesting in capitalizing in the comic aspects of a serious caper with a bunch of lunatics that have no clue what they really want. The result is one of the best movies of the fifties. The director was blessed in bringing together some of the best of the Italian cinema of the era.The wonderful Vittorio Gassman is Peppe, the man in charge of the caper. This legendary actor was at a great moment of his career, and although his character is not a serious one, he runs away with the film because he clearly understood what made Peppe tick. Toto, another magnificent actor plays Dante, who knows a thing, or two, about how to crack a safe. Renato Salvatori makes a good impression as Mario, who discovers he is in love with Carmelina. Marcello Mastroianni has a small role here, as Tiberio, the man with a wife in jail who must bring the infant son to all the gang meetings. Carlo Pisacane has some excellent moments as Campanelle. The same goes for Tiberio Murgia who as Ferribotte wants to protect his sister from all his male friends.The women in the film have lesser roles to play, but they clearly show they understood the material well. Carla Gravina makes a great Nicoletta. Claudia Cardinali appears as Carmelina, and lastly, Rosanna Rory is seen as Norma, Cosimo's girlfriend.The DVD we recently watched has been carefully transferred and looks as good as when the film was released. It helps that Monicelli employed cinematographer Gianni DiVenzano to capture his story in black and white. The jazzy score by Piero Umiliani goes along well with the action. Mario Monicelli directed with an eye for the picaresque in a film that is imitated, but never equaled.
