El conde Max

This little gem of a film is about a Roman newspaper vendor (Alberto Sordi) who enters the world of the rich for a brief time only to be disappointed that he is a fish out of water. Vittorio De Sica plays his penniless mentor. This is a remake of the 1937 "Il signor Max" in which Sordi's role was played by then matinee idol De Sica. Director Giorgio Bianchi has given us a fine sophisticated little comedy which almost lives up to the original.

Another fabel/comedy of the dangers for the poor Italian man who dares to rise up in society and challenge the high and mighty.This film is made in a more comical but realistic vein, and is well filmed.Alberto Sordi's acting is superb, and there is not a boring moment in the film ! This is a typical Italian neo realistic comedy, which was in such peak form in the late 1950's and early 1960's.Rarely, do Italians make such entertaining films nowadays,(with the exception of Pieracchioni and further back in time , Carlo Verdoni). This time Alberto plays the part of a newspaper vendor who dreams about sociliazing with the high society...but his dreams become reality when he befriends a nobleman fallen on hard times, who teaches him about manners and social mores when hanging around with nobles and super rich ! The results are definitely not up to expectations...but Alberto still manages to sociliaze with the jet set ....with disastrous and hilarious results ! Until he understands its better to marry a girl from his own modest background and 'keep to his stations', then run after crazy, jet setting, educated and polished people in which he stands out like a raw thumb !

The preformance of Vittorio de Sica(plays the part of poor nobleman) is as usual superb, and of course Alberto Sordi never disappoints ! A 8 vote.

The history of cinema is littered with inferior remakes but this film of Giorgio Bianchi is certainly a match for Camerini's 'white telephone' comedy of 1937. Both films star Vittorio de Sica as Max but here he is an impoverished aristocrat who is tutoring news vendor Alberto in how to behave in the company of his social superiors. Armed with this knowledge he tries his luck in the playgrounds of the rich. He manages to get away with the masquerade for a while but then his humiliation in a game of Bridge brings about the painful realisation that he is literally out of his class. The social climber is played to perfection by Alberto Sordi. He is hilarious and his timing is perfect especially in his scenes with the immaculate de Sica. Anne Vernon is splendidly superficial and well 'dubbed' as the Countess while the maid with whom Alberto finds true happiness is played by the appealing Susana Canales. This delightful, well-paced and entertaining comedy simply serves to remind us that 'Birds of a feather flock together' and that punching above ones weight can be a bruising experience! A third version directed by and starring de Sica's son Christian, is utterly worthless.