Beautiful Country

As a teenager, I would enthusiastically have given it 4 stars because anarchism, rebellion, criticality, and uncompromising humor can be felt in every shot. The film is a satire on Italy in the 70s, which was struggling with an economic crisis, strike chaos, political violence, and an overall crisis. Even Paolo Villaggio's humor was not yet as noticeably cheap and straightforward as in his later variations on Fantozzi Against the Wind. Nevertheless, over time, I have to say that even then Villaggio was orienting himself toward the "common viewer" and that intellectually oriented humor, which goes deeper and forces contemplation, is simply absent in him. Moreover, it is rushed with a single pace and lacks a more thought-out ending. Some gags and motifs, such as the rebellious radio station that constantly broadcasts greetings to the looters and gives valuable advice on how to strike this society mercifully, make me give it a third star, even though it is weaker. Overall impression: 50%. (26/11/2010)