''Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man'' ( it, La tragedia di un uomo ridicolo) is a 1981 Italian film directed by

Bernardo Bertolucci Bernardo Bertolucci (; 16 March 1941 – 26 November 2018) was an Italian film director and screenwriter with a career that spanned 50 years. Considered one of the greatest directors in Italian cinema, Bertolucci's work achieved international ...

. It stars

Anouk Aimée Nicole Françoise Florence Dreyfus (born 27 April 1932), known professionally as Anouk Aimée () or Anouk, is a French film actress, who has appeared in 70 films since 1947, having begun her film career at age 14. In her early years, she studi ...

and

Ugo Tognazzi Ugo Tognazzi (23 March 1922 – 27 October 1990) was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. Early life Tognazzi was born in Cremona, in northern Italy but spent his youth in various localities as his father was a travelling clerk fo ...

, who was awarded the Best Male Actor Award at the

1981 Cannes Film Festival The 34th Cannes Film Festival was held from 13 to 27 May 1981. The Palme d'Or went to the '' Człowiek z żelaza'' by Andrzej Wajda. The festival opened with '' Three Brothers'' (''Tre fratelli'') by Francesco Rosi and closed with '' Honeysuckle ...

for his performance. In his review,

Vincent Canby Vincent Canby (July 27, 1924 – October 15, 2000) was an American film and theatre critic who served as the chief film critic for ''The New York Times'' from 1969 until the early 1990s, then its chief theatre critic from 1994 until his death in ...

describes the film as, "Bernardo Bertolucci's very good, cerebrally tantalizing new film, ''Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man,'' the story of what may or may not be a terrorist kidnapping of the sort that has been making Italian headlines with increasing frequency in recent years."

Plot

Primo Spaggiari is a small cheese factory worker from

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...

. Primo is of peasant origin and did not go beyond elementary school, so he is considered as a

self-made man "Self-made man" is a classic phrase coined on February 2, 1842 by Henry Clay in the United States Senate, to describe individuals whose success lay within the individuals themselves, not with outside conditions. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Foun ...

. His wife Barbara, on the other hand, is a refined woman of French origin. One day, their son Giovanni is kidnapped by a group of terrorists and Primo has to raise a billion of lire for the ransom. Meanwhile, the dairy he owns is hit by a serious economic crisis. A young worker, Laura, Giovanni's girlfriend, and a worker priest, Adelfo, who know a lot about the kidnapping, intervene in the story. From them, Primo learns that his son has died. Primo, however, continues to collect the money, helped in this by his wife, to save his second creature: the factory, on the verge of bankruptcy. Following the indications of a false letter, written by Giovanni's girlfriend, the couple deposits the ransom money in the indicated place. The sudden reappearance of Giovanni means that in the end the billion is invested precisely in the dairy, transformed into a cooperative company, under the control of the workers.

Cast

- Primo Spaggiari *

- Barbara Spaggiari *

Laura Morante Laura Morante (born 21 August 1956) is an Italian film actress. Life and career Morante was born in Santa Fiora, province of Grosseto (Tuscany), the daughter of lawyer and playwright Marcello Morante, who was the son of Irma (née Poggibonsi) ...

- Laura *

Victor Cavallo Victor Cavallo (birth name Vittorio Vitolo, 8 May 1947 in Rome – 21 January 2000 in Rome) was an Italian actor and underground writer. He started his acting career on stage in 1974, in cinema worked for directors such as Bernardo Bertolucci ...

- Adelfo *

Olimpia Carlisi Olimpia Carlisi (born 29 December 1946) is an Italian stage, film and television actress. Career Carlisi was born in Campi Bisenzio, Florence, on 29 December 1946. After her debut as a stage actress, she made her film debut working with Roberto ...

- Romola, the palm reader *

Vittorio Caprioli Vittorio Caprioli (15 August 1921 – 2 October 1989) was an Italian actor, film director and screenwriter. He appeared in 109 films between 1946 and 1990, mostly in French productions. Biography Caprioli was born in Naples. Having graduated fr ...

- Marshal Angrisani *

Renato Salvatori Renato Salvatori (20 March 1933 – 27 March 1988) was an Italian actor. Born in Seravezza, Province of Lucca, Salvatori began his career in his teens playing juvenile, romantic roles. After working with directors such as Luchino Visconti, Ro ...

- Colonel Macchi *

Ricky Tognazzi Ricky Tognazzi (born Riccardo Tognazzi; ; 1 May 1955) is an Italian actor and film director. He has appeared in 50 films and television shows since 1963. His film '' The Escort'' was entered into the 1993 Cannes Film Festival. In 1991, he won ...

- Giovanni Spaggiari *

Gianni Migliavacca Gianni is an Italian name (occasionally a surname), a short form of the Italian Giovanni and a cognate of John meaning God is gracious. Gianni is the most common diminutive of Giovanni in Italian. People with this given name * Gianni Agnelli ( ...

Margherita Chiari Margherita is an Italian feminine given name. It also is a surname. As a word, in Italian it means " daisy". Given name As a name, it may refer to: *Margherita Aldobrandini (1588–1646), Duchess consort of Parma *Margherita de' Medici (1612 ...

- Maid *

Ennio Ferrari Ennio is a given name. Notable people with the name include: People *Ennio Antonelli (b. 1936), Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church *Ennio Balbo (1922–1989), Italian film actor * Ennio Bolognini (1893–1979), Argentina-born US musicia ...

Gaetano Ferrari Gaetano (anglicized '' Cajetan'') is an Italian masculine given name. It is also used as a surname. It is derived from the Latin ''Caietanus'', meaning "from ''Caieta''" (the modern Gaeta). The given name has been in use in Italy since medieval ...

- Guard *

Franco Trevisi Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" Prefix * Franco, a prefix used when ...

Pietro Longari Ponzoni Pietro is an Italian masculine given name. Notable people with the name include: People * Pietro I Candiano (c. 842–887), briefly the 16th Doge of Venice * Pietro Tribuno (died 912), 17th Doge of Venice, from 887 to his death * Pietro II C ...

Don Backy Don Backy (real name Aldo Caponi; born 21 August 1939) is an Italian singer, songwriter and actor. He collaborated with Sofia Rotaru for "Grey Bird" – Ukrainian version of Italian song "L'immensità"— "Сизокрилий птах". Selecte ...

- Crossing Keeper

References

External links

* 1981 films 1981 comedy films 1980s Italian-language films Films directed by Bernardo Bertolucci Commedia all'italiana Films scored by Ennio Morricone Films about child abduction 1982 comedy films 1982 films 1980s Italian films {{1980s-Italy-comedy-film-stub