Il bisbetico domato

"Il bisbetico domato" ("The taming of the Scoundrel") contains in the title a reference to Shakespeare's work "The taming of the shrew"... That's all, because the film has no other connection with the English author.

A rich farmer is well known for being very unkind. He's misanthropic, misogynous and cantankerous. Until he meets by chance a gorgeous girl...

The movie is a typical tailored story for Adriano Celentano, one of the biggest Italian music stars -he's hugely popular in German speaking countries and in the Eastern Europe as well. "Il bisbetico domato" is not a musical, and it is directed by the couple Castellano & Pipolo (authors of many Celentano flicks). It stars beautiful diva Ornella Muti.

The film is fine and funny, although not a cinematic monument. It's just a pretty film, with humor and without big inventions. Certainly we laugh, but above all we watch it because of the main actors -the couple works very well. At the time of its release the picture was, as usual, a smash hit in Italy.

I think you can really appreciate these movies, first, if you're a Celentano fan. I also think you should see them in the Italian version only -because the singer/showman has a peculiar voice and a way of telling the lines you'd completely miss with the translation.

A fun movie to watch, you wont regret it if u like Italian Comedy and the Actor himself (Celentano). In the movie Adriano Celentano (Elia) thinks that women are no good and prefers to live his healthy life alone with his dog and House keeper. Until one day a beautiful young woman comes to his house asking to stay for the night. Elia makes a horrible first impression by being rude towards the stranger. Nevertheless, she seems to like it about him and that what makes her want to stay in his company.

Elia is a confirmed bachelor in the thirties, living with a housemaid in an Italian village. The film starts with men talking about Elia's unbearable character, and these statements are illustrated by him entering and insulting everybody who comes in his way. The housemaid finds women for Elia, but he always succeeds in chasing them away with his awfulness until on a rainy night beautiful Lisa knocks on the door...

Although this film is done with little expense, its obviously exaggerated character can be very amusing. Undoubtedly it is a matter of taste; either you love it or you hate it.

I loved Celentano's "Joan Lui": it's one of the best "so bad so good" movie I've ever seen. So I've tried to watch others movies with him.

Let's go with this one:

Sexist? Yes. Funny? Depends: do you like unfunny Italian 80s comedy? Plot? Next question please. Characters? Lisa (Ornella Muti) has serious script problems. Dialogs? Classic Celentano's no-sense talking: "Sure at 100%" "100 x 100?" "10'000!" "Why?", it's up to you if this is a pro or a cons.

In the whole movie I would save only the 2 trashiest moment: the crushing of grapes and the basket game. You could see that behind the camera, in these two scenes, there is the "genius" hand of Celentano: strange music, weird Adriano dance and epileptic editing!

The film is just super. Old, but so cool. There is no vulgarity, as in most films today. And it's considered ridiculous. And then why the generation is now. Here, funny and without vulgar. You can, learn new comedies in such films. I advise you to look.