Wri/Dir: Lina Wertmüller | Cast: Giancarlo Giannini, Mariangela Melato, Riccardo Salvino, Aldo Puglisi | Italy, drama 120’
In her 1974 cult classic satire Italian director Lina Wertmuller pictures the World the same today as it was back then. Nothing much has changed between men and women, rich or poor.
A hedonistic couple shoot the breeze and top up their tans on a yacht in the Mediterranean. Mariangela Melato’s Raffaella is a feisty blonde jet-setter with her distinctive Northern accent and clearly captivated by her sultry working class companion Gennarino (Giannini) who hails from deep South. The two of them lock horns in a deliciously flirty conversation which treads lightly over their provocative political polarisation, the glorious sun-soaked location providing the backcloth for a weighty exchange of views contrasting with the idyllic ambience. But there is an the erotic twist to their torrid tete a tete as they sail into deeper waters. A wonderful voyage that is both intellectually challenging and visually stimulating. @MeredithTaylor
NOW IN A 4K RESTORATION | OPENS January 31 in New York City