''I mostri'' (also known as ''Opiate '67'' or, in a cut version, ''15 from Rome'') is a 1963

commedia all'italiana ''Commedia all'italiana'' () or Italian-style comedy is an Italian film genre born in Italy in the 1950s and developed in the 1960s and 1970s. It is widely considered to have started with Mario Monicelli's ''Big Deal on Madonna Street'' in 1958 ...

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

by Italian director

Dino Risi Dino Risi (23 December 1916 – 7 June 2008) was an Italian film director. With Mario Monicelli, Luigi Comencini, Nanni Loy, and Ettore Scola, he was one of the masters of ''commedia all'italiana''. Biography Risi was born in Milan. He had an ...

. It was coproduced with

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The film was a huge success in Italy. It was censored in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. In 1977 an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

nominee sequel was filmed, entitled '' I nuovi mostri'' ('' Viva Italia!''). In 2008, the film was included on the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage’s 100 Italian films to be saved, a list of 100 films that "have changed the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978."

Plot

The film features several episodes in which actors

Ugo Tognazzi Ottavio "Ugo" Tognazzi (23 March 1922 – 27 October 1990) was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the most important faces of Italian comedy together with Vittorio Gassman, Nino Manfredi, Marcello Mastr ...

and

Vittorio Gassman Vittorio Gassman (; born Gassmann; 1 September 1922 – 29 June 2000), popularly known as , was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the greatest Italian actors, whose career includes both important producti ...

are the greatest performers. The themes of the short stories are intended to offer a clear picture of the habits, vices, of cheating and taste typical of the majority of Italians in the Sixties. Obviously the characters and funny situations are written and staged in a way that touches the limits of satire and coarseness, but many of these issues are still recognized by the Italian company. The satire of the episodes affects people of both noble origins of poor people, both political and police officers who abuse their power and, last but not least the middle classes. The episode ''The Monster'' depicts a man who has killed the whole family and has barricaded himself in the house was arrested by two policemen (Gassman and Tognazzi) and photographed with the present. However, although the man is a murderer, the two cops are real monsters of ugliness. Another episode is ''Education'' in which the parent Ugo Tognazzi educates his son ( Ricky Tognazzi) being a perfect cheat to appear more masculine and smart, to pay much less and not plunging into heavy or boring situation would certainly not born. He instructs his son in beating their classmates who do not want him to copy the tasks and lie age when he went to the fair to not pay the ticket. When the child grows, the first thing it will do is make amends for his teachings repaying his father with a pistol and with the theft of all his possessions.

Episodes

The original version is composed of 20 episodes, all starred by

and

: * "L'educazione sentimentale" * "La raccomandazione" * "Il mostro" * "Come un padre" * "Presa dalla vita" * "Il povero soldato" * "Che vitaccia" * "La giornata dell'onorevole" * "Latin lovers" * "Testimone volontario" * "I due orfanelli" * "L'agguato" * "Il sacrificato" * "Vernissage" * "La musa" * "Scende l'oblio" * "La strada è di tutti" * "L'oppio dei popoli" * "Il testamento di Francesco" * "La nobile arte"

Notes

External links

* 1963 films 1963 comedy films 1960s Italian-language films Italian black-and-white films Films set in Italy Films set in Rome Commedia all'italiana Italian anthology films Films directed by Dino Risi Films with screenplays by Age & Scarpelli Films with screenplays by Ruggero Maccari Films scored by Armando Trovajoli 1960s Italian films Italian-language comedy films {{1960s-Italy-comedy-film-stub