lasttimeisaw A quartet mini-features from the 4 most prestigious Italian directors must be a rare treat for aficionados, but since shorts sometimes has been designed to experiment maestro's more daring or outlandish innovation, so a 1+1<2 formula is well acceptable for the viewers at least. Act 1, Monicelli's amiable modern tale of a pair of young newlyweds working in the same factory while conceiving their nuptial facts since it breaches the unfeeling regulation. Monicelli's devotion and affection to the general mass is ubiquitous, the camera follows intimately to record the lovebirds' daily work, diversion and quagmire, and the bittersweet ending is unerringly sanguine which should be the bloodline runs inside the Italian lineage. Act 2, Fellini's ever-first colour endeavour, surrealistic, sumptuous and luscious fantasy of a moral watchdog's eventual relinquishment towards a sexy bomb (an enormous 50 feet-tall Anita Ekberg), a female-exploitation gag which is constantly overplayed (not inclusively) in Fellini's canon. But visually, Fellini's manoeuvre of projecting different proportioned characters (creates two identical settings with different sizes) is quite nimble without exposing any shoddy clues (except the forged beasts, which is a buzzkill). Act3, Visconti's pleonastic noble Count whose brothel scandal evokes a major crisis with his wealthy but vindictive wife, a higher-tier pastiche ends up with a sloppy reference of a disparaging stinking rich's gauche prostitute fetish. At any rate Romy Schneider is the best thing in it, pairs with a well-suited Tomas Milian, presents a paragon of bourgeois vulnerability and emptiness. Act 4, another "prostitute" farce in a rural background, De Sica seduces the world with Sophia Loren's vulgar and crude beauty, a sultry whore will spend one night with the man who guess right of the lottery number, but it turns out to be a mental masturbation joke, quite tedious and a bit offensive. Apparently this is another patchy miscellany doesn't live up to the test of the time, Monicelli's neo-realistic part (which suspiciously is taken out completely in the original US release) is the standout and quite a pity it didn't make up to a feature-length piece of work which producer Carlo Ponti had promised then.

TheLittleSongbird My main attraction to Boccaccio 70 was that one of the four segments was directed by Federico Fellini(the others being Mario Monicelli, Luchino Visconti and Vittorio De Sica), whose work I have always admired. Getting the remastered version, I was expecting good, even great things, though I was prepared for some elements not being as good as others. And I found Boccaccio 70 to be interesting indeed. Sure it is uneven, but I could clearly see that a lot of work went into all the segments.Monicelli's Renzo E Luciana was intriguing. The love story is simple and very cute, and it is all delicately funny and charming with a touch of endearing sweetness. The two leads acquit themselves very well, Marisa Solinas is simply gorgeous, while it is beautifully filmed also. The story itself is rather slight though, with a couple of scenes that feel a little too long and not as tight in pace. It doesn't feel really all that rounded off either. However it is charming and cute and I'd definitely see it again.Fellini's Le Tentazioni del Dottor Antonio is my personal favourite of the four segments. It has Fellini's style all over it, it does feel personal and nostalgic, and he directs superbly. The pace is slowly deliberate but never feels dull. The settings and photography are stunning. I also loved it for how funny and surreal it was, the Milk song is very catchy stuff indeed, the various characters have certain quirks and charms that do make them likable in alternative to detached and Anita Ekberg is a sheer delight by her body alone. The music is bright and cheerful also.Visconti's Il Lavoro is perhaps my least favourite. That is not to say it isn't good, it definitely is, however I did find the pace sluggish and some of the dialogue dull and too talky. However, it is very touching on the whole and emotionally is the most complex of the four segments. It looks beautiful too, with skillful photography(love the close-up(s) of Schneider's eyes) and striking settings. The music is sensitively composed and orchestrated and doesn't feel overbearing in any way. What really elevates Il Lavoro though is the performance of Romy Schneider, sexy and very expressive, I identified with her completely, even if it was not quite the same with the rest of the cast.De Sica's Il Riffa is second best to Fellini's segment. As with the other three segments, it is beautifully shot and scored, De Sica directs with a firm yet involved hand, and of the four it is the most exciting. It is most memorable though for the performance of Sophia Loren. This is not just for Loren's sexiness, and she is very alluring here, but the fact that she plays a very strong-willed woman while managing to evoke some poignancy. I was also genuinely moved by the final encounter between her and the sacristan, who is just as endearingly performed.Overall, visually stunning with great lead performances(especially Loren), four great Italian directors doing solid to outstanding jobs on each segment and with generally interesting characters and stories. It is uneven, with Visconti's having many things to admire but somewhat wanting and Fellini's outstanding and possibly some of his best work, but none of them are unwatchable or anything. Well worth a watch. 7/10 Bethany Cox

jotix100 The idea behind "Boccacio '70" was to update some of the stories in Boccacio's Decameron into short segments directed by some of the top Italian directors, showcasing four actresses at the center of each story. The end result was not as interesting as the concept behind the idea. Thus, the resulting stories are not what could have been expected of directors like Federico Fellini, Vittorio DeSica, Luchino Visconti and Mario Monicelli.The first story "Luciana e Renzo" is directed by Mario Monicelli. Some of the contributors to the screen play included Italo Calvino, one of Italy's best writers. The story is simple. Luciana, a young woman working in the accounting department of a large firm, is going to get married to Renzo, who also happens to work for the company. The only problem is no marriage between employees is allowed.The film follows them as they use their lunch time to go to a remote church and get married. The newlyweds must share her parent's small apartment. The head of the department, who obviously likes the lovely Luciana, decides to hit on her when he sees her at a public swimming pool. Things go from bad to worse until the boss finds Luciana embracing Renzo. An idea comes to Luciana's mind: If they both get fired, the separation bonus will let them put a down payment for an apartment of their own.Beautiful Marisa Solinas is Luciana and Germano Gilioli plays Renzo.The next story, "Le tentazioni del dottor Antonio" was conceived by Federico Fellini, who also wrote the screen play with Tullio Pinelli, a frequent collaborator, and others. The story is about Antonio a prudish man who is shocked when an enormous advertising ad is erected in a space facing his apartment. In it, a blown up figure of the actress Anita Ekberg is shown in a suggestive pose holding a glass of milk.No matter what Dr. Antonio does, he is unable to get a friendly ear to help his cause. He becomes so obsessed that one day the gigantic figure in the billboard comes to haunt him. Anita Ekberg, towers over him and teases him mercilessly. What to do? In spite of his protestations Dr. Antonio, who perhaps has not seen a woman this close in his life, is rendered impotent to do anything against a goddess like Anita Ekberg.The great Peppino DiFilippo appears as Dr. Antonio and the real Anita Ekberg, who made a splash in Fellini's "La Dolce Vita" (no pun intended), have some fine moments in the movie.The third story "Il Lavoro", directed by Luchino Visconti, presents us with Conte Ottavio, an impoverished nobleman married to the rich Pupe, the daughter of an extremely rich man. Ottavio, who has been surprised by paparazzi with a high class prostitute, has been shown in all of the tabloids in compromising positions. Pupe, who at the start of the film seems to be missing, appears in her own room. She obviously loves the lecherous husband and has made up her mind to begin earning her own living in a regular job. Ottavio, who pleads with her not to do it, realizes his financial dependence on Pupe will suffer. Pupe demands the same kind of payment he made to the call girl. At the end, we see as Ottavio is writing a check as he comes over to Pupe.The fabulous Romy Schneider was excellent as Pupe and Tomas Millian makes a great appearance.The last story, "La riffa", directed by Vittorio DeSica and written by Cesare Zavattini, takes us to a small town where Zoe, a beautiful woman who has a shooting gallery in a carnival must make ends meet. Her sister, who is having a baby, needs money that she doesn't have, so she ideates a raffle in which she will be the prize. Needless to say, all the men in town buy all the chances. The meek sacristan is the winner, but when he comes to claim his prize, Gaetano, who is secretly in love with Zoe, will not let the sacristan get the lovely Zoe.Sophia Loren is marvelous as the tart-tongued Zoe. She had worked with Mr. DeSica before and she gives a wonderful reading. Luigi Giuliani is Gaetano and Alfio Vita plays the sacristan."Boccacio '70", the film, and the writer Boccacio showed they were ahead of its times in presenting strong women taking charge of their destinies.

Len Helfgott I remember seeing this as a teenager when it was in the movies. An entertaining trio with a sexual theme but no nudity in the 60's. The best was 'The Censor' with a hyper-voluptuous Anita Ekberg as a 100 foot long billboard ad (for milk) that comes to life to torment the local censor -- absolutely hilarious. Then the magnificent Sophia Loren in "The Lottery" where the winner of the drawing wins her for the night. Last is with the late Romy Schneider in a bittersweet tale about a philandering husband who uses their wealth on prostitutes. At least that's what I remember after well over 30 years. If anyone knows where I can rent this again, please let me know.