All Screwed Up

Despite being from the golden 70s period where Wertmüller flourished, this is one of her more minor films as it doesn't contain any of the regular actors like Giancarlo Giannini that she used during that time. It's still a fantastic film though, and if you love Wertmüller, you'll love this as well.

Unlike most of her most famous works All Screwed Up was set in then contemporary Italy. It's an ensemble comedy featuring some of Wertmüller's most treasured themes, the gentrification of Italy, immigration, class mobility and gender politics. The film starts out with two men from Sicily who have just arrived in Milan. They meet a crying young woman, also a new arrival, and help her find her cousin. They end up living together along with several other ragtag individuals. As time goes on, some of them put off love in order to find financial success, while others are eaten up by the city.

Nobody does tragicomedy like the Italians, and Wertmüller is a master at this kind of tone. The movie is absolutely hilarious but at the same time exposes soul crushing truths.