Noi donne siamo fatte così

An American reviewer is puzzled that some of the sketches are not funny, imagining that this is supposed to be a series of comedies like an American production. However Commedia All'italiana, what this comes from, was obviously not comedy in the modern English sense. A comedy is a narrative that does not end in tragedy e.g. The Divine Comedy. An actor can be la comedienne in French but not a comedian! Even Hollywood has produced films with Jack Lemmon for instance that mix comedy and tragedy. I am not an expert on Tragicomedy and why it was so different in England than Italy but others can explain it.

No one has reviewed this film yet, so I'll give it a try.

"Noi donne, siamo fatti cosi," which translates as "That's How We Women Are," is an anthology of 12 episodes, all showcasing the comedic talents of Monica Vitti, and all directed by commedia all'italiana veteran Dino Risi. Ms. Vitti plays a variety of roles, including a stewardess, a war reporter, a motorcycle stunt rider, and a union organizer. Enrico Maria Salerno and Carlo Giuffre are among the few recognizable supporting cast members.

Some of the sketches are quite effective. In "Mamma" she plays a working class woman with 22 children trying explain her reasons for not controlling her family's size to a reporter. In "Et Dominus venit" ("And the Lord Came"), written by director Ettore Scola, she is a singing nun performing the hilarious title song, much to the embarrassment of clergy in her audience. And in "L'allumeuse" ("The Tease") she gets to be a glamorous woman dining in an expensive restaurant whose intentions are completely misunderstood by the men staring at her.

Unfortunately, some of the other skits seemed either to be pointless, or had predictable messages. Of course I'm not Italian, so I may have missed some of the nuances of character and dialogue.

I have the greatest respect for Monica Vitti as a dramatic actress, but after breaking up with Michelangelo Antonioni in the mid-'60s, she decided to reinvent her career, switching to lighter entertainment. I've generally been underwhelmed by her talent for comedy. She's attractive and likeable, but not really very funny. On the other hand, attractive and likeable isn't a bad combination as long as your expectations aren't too high.