I titled this review in this way because the description says "a beautiful film." To me, the word "beautiful" becomes obscene if used frivolously, and in this case, it deserves its just counterpart, in what I confess may be a subjective interpretation as well. I stumbled upon this film looking up the Gaspar Noe film "Carne," and I figured, it sounds silly, but why not give it a try? I haven't watched an Italian film in awhile, and I was in the mood for something different.
Suffice it to say, at this point in my life, I hate films like this, HATE them. Back in the day I used to bushwhack my way through giallo films, and Italian sex comedies on an almost daily basis, and I think this film is as good a place as any to completely neuter that curiosity. In that respect, I'm not even completely sure how to classify this film. Is it a comedy? Is it a romantic drama with cutesy elements? This aspect of Italian culture may be somewhat elusive to me,, but to me, films like this aren't funny, they're energy sucking. The female romantic lead says of the protagonist "You're like a vampire!" Well that's how I feel too.
I do hope Italian cinema has evolved from this, but in 1991, this feels like a fairly late entry into the typical Italian sex comedy premise of silly ridiculous sexual scenarios, and goofy men acting goofy during sex with knockout bombshell women who apparently have no better options in love and in life. This film is largely in that vein, with typical dumb giallo style gross-out scenes peppered all the way through for shock value, with the characters' actions being justified by typical Italian pseudo-intellectual drivel. To me, this is the boon of any 20th century Italian film that tends to be conceptual in nature. You see it even in films that are considered good, like Fellini Satyricon or Farinelli, where the characters cease being characters, and become vessels to express an idea, usually one that's not applicable to real life in any direct way.
It's very hard for me to find value in a film based around characters who I can't relate to, and don't feel real to me. Again, I'm just expressing one man's opinion. If you enjoy this type of thing, have at it, but personally I'd rather leave it in the dustbin of film history. For what it's worth, at the very least, in this era of film, the Italian actor would actually be bold enough to give the booby a squeeze and a lick during the numerous farcical lovemaking scenes, which is pretty much the one redeemable aspect there is here, and if you're' a casual unassuming viewer, the best you could hope for, so if you share the director's obvious fetish for frizzy-haired women, you could give this one a try, though personally, Francesca Dellera's implants ruin her for me.
