''Ginger and Fred'' ( it, Ginger e Fred) is a 1986 comedy/drama film directed and written by

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most ...

and starring

Marcello Mastroianni Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni (28 September 1924 – 19 December 1996) was an Italian film actor, regarded as one of his country's most iconic male performers of the 20th century. He played leading roles for many of Italy's top di ...

and

Giulietta Masina Giulia Anna "Giulietta" Masina (22 February 1921 – 23 March 1994) was an Italian film actress best known for her performances as Gelsomina in '' La Strada'' (1954) and Cabiria in '' Nights of Cabiria'' (1957), for which she won the Cannes Film ...

. The title is a reference to the American dancing couple

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...

and

Ginger Rogers Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...

. The two leads portray Italian impersonators of Astaire and Rogers who reunite after thirty years of retirement for a vulgar and bizarre television extravaganza. The film was the subject of a

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from ot ...

claim in the United States by

, who claimed in '' Rogers v. Grimaldi'' that the film violated her

Lanham Act The Lanham (Trademark) Act (, codified at et seq. () is the primary federal trademark statute of law in the United States. The Act prohibits a number of activities, including trademark infringement, trademark dilution, and false advertising. ...

trademark rights, right of publicity, and was a "

false light In US law, false light is a tort concerning privacy that is similar to the tort of defamation. The privacy laws in the United States include a non-public person's right to protection from publicity that creates an untrue or misleading impr ...

" defamation. The Second Circuit rejected this claim, finding that "suppressing an artistically relevant though ambiguous ytitle film" on trademark grounds would "unduly restrict expression."

Plot

Amelia and Pippo were once together famous as dancers, imitating Ginger Rogers' and Fred Astaire's dance routines. Thirty years after they've retired, they team up one more time for a live TV show. Although this reunion is overshadowed by Pippo's lack of stamina, their performance is well-received and revives their popularity for another day.

Cast

as Amelia Bonetti (Ginger) *

as Pippo Botticella (Fred) *

Franco Fabrizi Franco Fabrizi (; 15 February 1916 – 18 October 1995) was an Italian actor. Life and career Son of a barber and a cinema cashier, Franco Fabrizi started his career as a model and an actor in fotoromanzi. Fabrizi also starred on several revu ...

as Show host * Friedrich von Ledebur as Admiral Aulenti * Augusto Poderosi as transvestite * Martin Maria Blau as assistant director *

Jacques Henri Lartigue Jacques Henri Lartigue (; 13 June 1894 – 12 September 1986) was a French photographer and painter, known for his photographs of automobile races, planes and female Parisian fashion models. Biography Born in Courbevoie in western Paris to a ...

as Brother Gerolamo *

Totò Mignone Ottone "Totò" Mignone (1906–1993) was an Italian dancer and actor of the stage and film.Kezich p.286 He was the elder brother of the actress and singer Milly. Selected filmography * ''Five to Nil'' (1932) * ''The Taming of the Shrew'' (1942) * ...

as Totò *

Ezio Marano Ezio Marano (6 August 1927, Brescia – 26 April 1991, Rome) was an Italian actor. Biography He made his debut in the theater in the mid-50s at the ''Piccolo Teatro'' in Milan under the guidance of Giorgio Strehler, in a long series of perfor ...

as the intellectual *

Antoine Saint-John Antoine Saint-John (born 11 August 1940-2 july 1990) (aka Domingo Antoine, Jean-Michel Antoine, Antoine Michel) was a French actor. Born in Avignon, France, he found work as a stage actor until the early 1970s, when he began working on films. H ...

as bandaged man * Friedrich von Thun as kidnapped tycoon * Antonino Iuorio as TV inspector * Barbara Scoppa as journalist * Elisabetta Flumeri as journalist * Salvatore Billa as

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

Caterina Vertova Caterina Vertova (born July 19, 1960 in Milan) is an Italian actress. She studied in London and in Paris, as well as at the Actors Studio in New York City. Roles Stage *''Ghosts'', by Henrik Ibsen (1985) Beppe Navello, (1985) *''Macbeth'' ...

Reception

''Ginger and Fred'' was nominated for best foreign film awards in 1986 by the U.S. National Board of Review of Motion Pictures, as well as the 1987

Golden Globes The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of ...

and BAFTA. Masina received a

David di Donatello for Best Actress The David di Donatello Award for Best Actress ( it, David di Donatello per la migliore attrice protagonista) is a film award presented annually by the Accademia del Cinema Italiano (ACI, ''Academy of Italian Cinema'') to recognize the outstandin ...

award for her role (1986).

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ginger And Fred 1986 films Italian satirical films Films directed by Federico Fellini Films about television Films about entertainers Cultural depictions of Fred Astaire 1980s Italian-language films Films set in Rome Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1986 comedy-drama films Italian comedy-drama films Films with screenplays by Federico Fellini Films with screenplays by Tonino Guerra Films produced by Alberto Grimaldi Transgender-related films Italian dance films 1980s dance films 1986 drama films 1986 comedy films Films scored by Nicola Piovani 1980s Italian films

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links