I first ran across the title Big Deal on Madonna Street some 20 years ago, when I was perusing my first copy of Leonard Maltin's film reference book, but it took me a while to add it to my list of European films to check out. The reviews always seemed so delightedly affectionate, and I was reluctant to discover that it, too, was tedious as so many European films turn out to be. But after I saw Riffifi, I thought it'd be fun to see an open send up; if nothing else I'd catch all the references.
Score another to the continentals. This is certainly one of the funniest films ever made. Big Deal on Madonna Street is a joyous sendup of the heist genre: the hardened criminal who learns of the perfect score, the intro to the team, the detailed planning, the setbacks, the breakthrough, and of course, the painstaking execution. All the plot requirements are met and mangled hilariously. The hardened criminal can't steal a car without setting off the horn and he's too slow to outrun the cops. No one else on the team has moved much beyond grand theft stroller ("it's the only thing with wheels and no alarm").
The characters are all wonderfully drawn. One team member is an incompetent boxer with a heart of gold, another must babysit his son while his wife is in jail for cigarette smuggling, making him possibly the first father on film with childcare issues-what to do with his son while he's working? ("Put him in jail with his mother, they have a great nursery in jail." "No, I don't want him to go to jail until he's all grown up, and then only if he wants to.")
Then there's the sweet ex-orphan who is always buying gifts for his mother, with a payoff that is never mentioned overtly. A major Italian comic, Toto (think Jerry Lewis), shows up as Dante, the ex-thief, giving the hapless team hysterical lectures on safecracking and other fine points of thieving. One team member locks his sister up in the house all day; virginity is important!
The comedy scores on all levels. There are several outstanding slapstick sequences: my favorite is the bar fight where you just know the boxer is going to eventually go down, but how? This is the only subtitled comedy I have found myself quoting, the dialogue just crackles with good humor. The situations all pay off perfectly, and there are howlingly funny set pieces; the attempt to film the safe for closer scrutiny is a particular gem.
At the edge of all the comedy, of course, is sad reality of all the lives wasted by a lack of opportunity in post-war Italy. Tragedy does lurk around the corner, and the ending is probably the least accessible part of the film to American sensibilities. But the characters keep plugging away, and that's always worth celebrating.
Director and co-writer Mario Monicelli is apparently well-known by those who aren't 'murrican oafs. Big Deal is proof enough for me. This is also an extremely goodlooking film, with impressive cinematography and marvellous shot composition. The performances of the major players are all flawless. Vittorio Gassman is delectable and funny in his first comedy, and this is the film that made Marcello Mastroianni, the dad with no daycare, a star. A 17 year old Claudia Cardinale is the sister who has little to do but look hapless and stunning, she delivers nicely--the guy playing her brother was a dishwasher, apparently, which is pretty normal for Italian films from that period.
The film is dubbed, which was also the norm at the time, although the major stars do their own voices. Don't let this distract you. The Criterion transfer is superb, but there aren't a lot of extras.
Add it to your Netflix queue, and maybe try it with your kids. Spawn howled all the way through it and wanted to see it twice.
