Bluff - Los embrollones

High Rollers is in my opinion one of the greatest movies ever, probably the best comedy. It is absolutely fantastic.

It seems like I've seen this movie at least a hundred times - when I was growing up Bluff was one of my favorite movies and I always watched it on TV whenever it was on. There's something about Adriano Celentano and Anthony Quinn's dynamic duo that makes Bluff such an immortal classic that I can watch over and over again, even in its native Italian language (which I watched just now for the first time).

The con movies are not the best at showing true emotions because its main characters are embedded with lies - they can do or tell anything just to play the game to the end, to succeed in a bluff - and this one is no exception. Celentano's Felix is young but talented enough to play big games all by himself whereas Quinn's Philip knows every trick in the book and is ready to put everything for the bluff of a lifetime, and they team up to pull it. Sure it sounds a lot like The sting that came out just 3 years prior to this one but it hasn't got either the class or charisma of the main characters (no disrespect to Paul Newman and Robert Redford but their duo is just ordinary and no match to these guys), or the astonishing music by Lelio Luttazzi that I got hooked on since the first seconds.

By the time I got internet and was in my twenties already I found out that I was watching an abridged version of the movie the whole time: for censorship reasons there were many scenes deleted that included nudity, profanity and questionable decisions made by Felix - which was not surprising why but it sort of robbed the character of his own growth. When we first meet him he's mean, green, egotistical and willing to stoop as low as one can get to take what he wants but by the end he realizes there's more to life than just a game. A bluff is a bluff but if the safety of your own and the people nearest you are at stake you'd do the impossible to keep it, even put mannequins on motorcycles and say "Andiamo!".

Bluff is the kind of story that you'd want to go back to as soon as you're beginning to miss those characters (which happens sooner than you think), it's funny, witty, has a ton of memorable moments and pieces of dialogue, incredible performances and unbelievably beautiful music score. Pa-ba-raaam..

I'll get the obvious out of the way: this is an Italian movie in which everyone but Anthony Quinn and Capucine are dubbed by really ridiculous English voices. If you don't like Spaghetti Westerns, you're not going to make it through this one.

The Con Artists, one of many release titles, is 1970s Italian slapstick, so again, if you're not in the mood for that, you'll probably turn it off. I only stuck with it for love of Anthony Quinn, who looked very handsome in his silver-haired splendor. Tony and Italian actor Adriano Celentano are jailbirds who escape due to a series of bizarre con jobs on the prison guards. They team up for the larger goal of getting revenge on Tony's ex-wife, Capucine, but for the vast majority of the movie, they're just pulling pranks and con jobs on random people. For example, Tony wants a new suit, so after he's tried one on, Adriano tells the shop owner that Tony has leprosy. The shop owner tells Tony to leave the story immediately, and he gets to keep the suit without paying for it.

This is a pretty silly movie, one that only kids might like, if it weren't for the terrible dubbing that would make them tune out. Unless you're in love with the cast, you can skip this one. Try The Secret of Santa Vittoria instead.

I first saw this movie in a different country and had not been able to find it in the U.S. until technology came to be what it is today. I had the great fortune to talk with Mr. Quinn regarding this movie and he spoke only of how wonderful it was working with his co-star. It is apparent when you watch how these two work with each other throughout the storyline. Playful, with impeccable timing their interactions show the quality of the full production value and is what makes this comedy timeless. Adventures, problems, humor, and conflicts created by their own silliness makes it a worthwhile film to watch. It's ending leaves one smiling and laughing.

The Con Artists is a light Italian comedy featuring Adriano Celentano. A well-transmitted era of the 30s to France. Easy comedy to watch for once. Unexpected to see Anthony Quinn in Italian cinema.