Johnny Stecchino

I just watched the 1991 Italian movie "Johnny Stecchino" (or "Johnny Toothpick") on video. One of my all-time favorite films is "La Vita è bella" ("Life is Beautiful", 1997), another film that Roberto Benigni also directed, co-wrote, and played the lead role in. When I saw a preview of Benigni's comedy "Johnny Stecchino", I had to see the movie.

Benigni is truly a gifted man with comic elements that remind me in this film of the Marx Brothers in physicality and Mr. Bean in amazing simple ignorance. He plays a dual role. As Dante, a bus driver for a group of retarded young adults, he is hopelessly clueless and the highlight of his daily routine seems to be playing a silly trick (every day?! won't the fruit sellers catch on?!) resulting in his stealing a banana for his breakfast. He also plays a mafioso type, Johnny Stecchino, who has snitched on his fellow criminals and is now hiding for fear of his life.

Dante runs into lovely Maria (Nicoletta Braschi) who is really Johnny's wife, but she feigns an inexplicable attraction for Dante. She invites Dante to her grand villa in Palermo (Sicily), where we understand her true plot to have the lookalike simpleton killed so she can live happily with her Johnny.

The film is a comedy of misunderstandings with scenes of stolen bananas, introducing a shocked Roman Catholic Cardinal to cocaine (mistakenly as a diabetic medicine), the two look-alikes running into each other and the criminal pretending to be a mirror to keep himself hidden, a group of seeming mafiosi being led by Dante in singing a children's song enunciating the sounds that various animals make (is this an inside Italian joke, as this reminds me of the 1991 Italian film "Caro Diario" - see <http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0109382/usercomments-12> ?!), and more. Though I wish that Johnny didn't use offensive language, it was otherwise a zany and funny film showing off Benigni's comic genius. Santa Cleopatra!

--Dilip Barman, May 21, 2004

Roberto Benigni, who went to achieve international stardom with "Life Is Beautiful," plays two roles in this comedy. The story is about an innocent man who is dead ringer for a gangster-informant-in hiding. Benigni plays both roles.

It's a decent movie, a low-key comedy that has some funny moments but would have been much better had it been chopped down about 15 minutes. It tends to drag a bit during the second half. Benigni, as the "wimp," is a very charming guy and one that's easy to root for, but the rest of the characters in the film are just so-so. It's odd to ever see the usually high-strung Benigni as a lower-key person.

Surprisingly, this is an "R" rated comedy, and that's because of the language. I rented this once, but would see it again, especially since it''s now available on DVD.

I think I learned Italian from this movie, I watched it so many times.

I've simply never loved a movie as so cute and funny as this, its well worth tracking it down, Its still pretty available if you know the right places to look.

Roberto and Nicoletta are perfect together on and off screen, truly a mating of Eagles as the Romans would say.

take the perfect vaudeville act, Where you have some idiot who is just a heart of Gold, mix in a scheming Mafia donna, take a bunch of Italians in good suits add a little illegal narcotics done by politicans.

Steal a banana or two, and then change places with a murderous Cut throat assasino. What do you get? Superb cinema.

I first saw this movie several years ago as a "movie of the week"...what a joy! I had the film specially ordered and to date have watched it at LEAST a dozen times...I cannot get enough of this charming film! Roberto Benigni and his wife, Nicoletta Braschi are the perfect team. And the co-stars are just as fabulous...this is definitely a team effort! Most highly recommended!

...for see it. first, the lovely use of the legacy of old fashion tradition. the second, the genius of Roberto Benigni. not the last , Nicoletta Braschi. not the less , Palermo. and the predictable parts and the crumbs from Charlot , the romanticism and Italian spices. one of comedies who are more than humor, entertainment or moral lesson. but a trip across yourself. because the gift of Benigni is to tell, in smart manner, not a story but the story about his public. this film is a good example.