I didn't like much this movie because it was kind of an average movie on recalling he days of the movie director's youth, Pupi Avati, in Bologna. It might be that I have a masterpiece as Fellini's Amarcord as a reference for these kinds of movies the reason that I didn't appreciated "Gli amici del bar Margherita", yet I give a sufficient vote to it (6 out of 10) because it has a good plot built around the bar and its characters, each one with his own personality and peculiarity, each one with a cartoon-like twist as Manuelo with his peculiar laugh. Plus, the director managed to deliver a reliable picture of the Italian provincial life in the 50s.
2 Reviews
The practical jokers
jotix1009 June 2011
Warning: Spoilers
A nostalgic look at a place lost in time is at the center of this story which is set in the Bologna of the 1950s. The bar Margherita was a sort of club where mostly men, gathered nightly to socialize, have a good time and get into all kinds of mischief playing practical jokes, some of which backfired on them, or were just plain cruel. The different pictures adorning the walls of the bar tells a story about the years when life was less complicated.
The story is seen through Taddeo a young man who manages to become the driver of Al, a shady character with full of mystery. Al had a passion for playing billiards and women. Bep, a loner, gets engaged to the fat Beatrice. His friends at the bar try to make him break his engagement and future marriage by engaging Marcella, a woman from the Esedra night club frequented by Al.
One of the cruelest jokes done by the guys at the Margherita has to be the one where Gian, a man that dreams of being a singer is told his opportunity has come. The guys managed to fake an invitation for Gian to participate in the yearly festival of song at San Remo. We watch the poor man preparing for what he thinks is his opportunity to get a name, only to be ridiculed by the organizers of the event who have not a clue about Gian having been invited to perform.
Pupi Avati's love for his native Bologna shows in many ways in this comedy that takes a look at a more naive time. He focuses on a group of idlers that pass the time when things were simpler. The film reminds us of other Italian films about the same theme. Men do not seem to want to get serious. They basically want to have a good time and not think of more important matters.
Mr. Avati gathers a marvelous cast, among them Diego Abatantouno, Laura Chiati, Luigi LoCascio, Fabio De Luigi, Neri Marcore, the great Katia Ricciarelli, and Claudio Botosso, who is seen as Taddeo, shine. The large supporting players do a good job for Mr. Avati. A nostalgic music score by Lucio Dalla is one of the assets of the film as well as the cinematography by Pascuale Rachini.
The story is seen through Taddeo a young man who manages to become the driver of Al, a shady character with full of mystery. Al had a passion for playing billiards and women. Bep, a loner, gets engaged to the fat Beatrice. His friends at the bar try to make him break his engagement and future marriage by engaging Marcella, a woman from the Esedra night club frequented by Al.
One of the cruelest jokes done by the guys at the Margherita has to be the one where Gian, a man that dreams of being a singer is told his opportunity has come. The guys managed to fake an invitation for Gian to participate in the yearly festival of song at San Remo. We watch the poor man preparing for what he thinks is his opportunity to get a name, only to be ridiculed by the organizers of the event who have not a clue about Gian having been invited to perform.
Pupi Avati's love for his native Bologna shows in many ways in this comedy that takes a look at a more naive time. He focuses on a group of idlers that pass the time when things were simpler. The film reminds us of other Italian films about the same theme. Men do not seem to want to get serious. They basically want to have a good time and not think of more important matters.
Mr. Avati gathers a marvelous cast, among them Diego Abatantouno, Laura Chiati, Luigi LoCascio, Fabio De Luigi, Neri Marcore, the great Katia Ricciarelli, and Claudio Botosso, who is seen as Taddeo, shine. The large supporting players do a good job for Mr. Avati. A nostalgic music score by Lucio Dalla is one of the assets of the film as well as the cinematography by Pascuale Rachini.
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