Il tigre

"Il tigre" ("The Tiger and the Pussycat") is an Italian film starring Vittorio Gassman as well as Ann-Margret and Eleanor Parker. It starts of VERY badly, with some god-awful music that is very offputting. My suggestion is that you mute your TV during this intro!

Francesco (Gassman) is a successful man with a lovely wife (Parker). However, after his son tries to kill himself over a woman, Francesco sees the same young woman and goes gaga. Soon he's having an affair and throwing his life away for this woman. But the woman (Ann-Margret) isn't THAT serious about him and he begins to smother her with demands). As for the wife, she knows what is happening but hopes by ignoring it that he'll get the other woman out of his system and return to her. Instead, Francesco pretty much throws everything away, including his job, for the other woman.

The film is a comedy...even though my summary sure doesn't sound like it. I think the humor is supposed to be in watching Francesco make a fool of himself. For me, it was occasionally funny but overall I was a bit bored by it after a while. Not a terrible film but a slightly below average one.

A good looking Italian businessman with a wandering eye acts like a complete idiot for about an hour and a half, that's about all that happens as the audience watches him go through what would now be called a mid-life crisis. The most interesting aspect of this is the cars and the 60's fashions and Ann-Margret's almost glowing hair and clothes.

Meandering comedy/drama that is too much Gassman and not enough A-M. She still gets a better shake than poor Eleanor Parker who is almost completely wasted in a rather demeaning role as a doormat wife. Hard to find so if you have the chance and are a fan of either lady give it a shot but it's a minor credit for all.

Vittorio Gassman, married to Eleanor Parker and living in Italy, is innocently introduced one day to a schoolkid with pigtails and a goofy grin. Years later, that schoolgirl has become a wanton young woman. She ensnares the married man and plays him like a flute, but how serious is she? He finds himself desirous of her on-again/off-again charms, calling her on the phone in the middle of the night, getting himself in deeper and deeper. Such is the crux of this middle-age-crazy romance-that-really-isn't. It's a thoughtful Italian-made 'dramedy' that attempts to give its characters some dignity (even Ann-Margret's somewhat viporous role isn't all one shade). The low budget and occasional dubbing shouldn't put off fans of the stars. They're worth-watching here in what would make a great double-bill with A-M's similarly-titled "Kitten With A Whip". **1/2 from ****