Ricchi, ricchissimi... praticamente in mutande

A three-part anthology film. In the first story, a man moves with his family to a self-made, rickety "beach house", but a group of nudists also decide to camp there. In the second, an unhappily married fat man is infatuated with a beautiful German lady who is also an obsessive gambler, but will he have a chance to go all the way with her before his fat wife and the lady's violent husband find out? In the third, the bankrupt owner of a shipyard has one last chance at salvation: a very rich Arab sheik is interested in signing a contract with him. However, the sheik's demands may be a little unusual.

From the English title, "Don't PLay With Tigers", and the cover, featuring Edwige Fenech and another woman in provocative poses, I was under the impression that this was a sex comedy. However, to say it's unfunny would be an understatement - there are 2 laughs tops. And the only nudity comes from the nudists of the first story. Fenech appears ONLY in the third episode, and although she is as beautiful as ever, she doesn't get nude or anywhere close to it. Seriously, unless you consider 20 SECONDS of Edwige belly-dancing reason enough to sit through a 100-minute movie, avoid this time-waster. (*)

Don't Play with Tigers is an example of the sex comedy anthology that was popular in Italy around the mid seventies. Director Sergio Martino actually made one of the best of these films in 1976 with the excellent Sex with a Smile; but as was the case with his eighties Giallo entry The Scorpion with Two Tails, Martino has not lived up his earlier successes with this film. The most disappointing element of it is the way that the great Edwige Fenech is used; she only appears in one segment of the film and is not even the main character. There was a similar situation in Sex with a Smile; but that one had stronger stories. This film features three stories that are all rather weak and don't feature any sex. The first revolves around a man who takes his family to a beach hut; only for their privacy to be invaded by nudists. This plot is actually fairly decent, although a long way from brilliant, and is unfortunately the film's high point. The second story is about a man who is married but has his head turned by a sexy German woman...with no amusing results. The third and final tale is the weakest of the bunch despite featuring Edwige Fenech and revolves around a deal with a sheik. The film is surrounded by a courtroom wraparound story; and like the stories that stem from it, this is not very interesting either. Overall, Don't Play with Tigers is difficult to find and not worth looking for. Die hard Edwige fanatics only!

This is the really the last of Sergio Martino's portmanteau sex comedies, and while it is certainly weaker than "Sex with a Smile", "Sex with a Smile 2", and his section of "Saturday, Sunday, and Friday", it's not a bad film either. It's better than "Tigers in Lipstick" (with which the English-language title tries to connect it). And, god knows, it's better than all those films about teachers, nurses, policewomen, and schoolgirls that co-stars Lino Banfi and Edwige Fenech were always appearing in the 70's.

There are only three stories here and the first and third are by far the better. The first story has Pippo Franco as a beleaguered father trying to take his wife (Adrianna Russo)and children on a beach vacation, but his plans are jeopardized by a group of obnoxious French nudists, who want to share the same stretch of deserted beach. The second story has the ubiquitous Lino Banfi playing a crooked businessman staying at a hotel with his unattractive wife while trying to arrange a military marriage for his equally unattractive daughter. He gets sidetracked though by another attractive German guest (Janet Agren) who likes to play cards and engages him a game of strip poker. This segment seems mostly recycled from a lot of earlier Martino comedies with the unattractive Banfi running around the hotel in his underwear (as in "Cream Puffs") and some coitus interruptus courtesy of the German woman's big dog (as in "Sex with a Smile"). The last story is about factory owner trying to save his business--and himself from his angry unpaid workers--by signing a deal with a rich Arab. The Arab, however, apparently wants his sexy wife (Edwige Fenech)thrown in as part of the deal, but there is a funny twist at the end. The frame story for all these takes place in an Italian court where these three misadventures have all resulted in legal action and from which they are each related in flashback. (There's some funny scenes here of everybody else in courtroom profusely sweating while the doddering old judge complains of "draughts" and demands windows be closed, fans turned off, etc).

There is a lot more comedy than sex in this particular film. Fenech does keep her clothes on for once, but after fifteen years of these movies, she had certainly earned the right. Fenech was a naturally talented comedienne and by this point had certainly got good at these sort of roles, so her lack of nudity, while regrettable, is not really a problem. The less talented Agren doesn't get naked either though (and Lino Banfi definitely gets TOO naked). The only cheesecake really is the French girls in the first story and the luscious Adriana Russo. Still, these things must be growing on me because I prefer a funnier one like this that's a little light on the cheescake, to a piece of crap like "Schoolteacher in the House" that had Fenech undressed in ever other scene, but was otherwise worthless dreck.

`Ricchi, ricchissimi, praticamente in mutande' (aka Don't play with tigers) is another comedy anthology from the team that brought us `Zucchero, miele e peperoncino' (1980). It features the same cast, the same premise and the same courthouse. Three cases of misunderstanding and mischief follow:

First up in court is Renato (Pippo Franco), who in order to enjoy the cheapest holiday possible, builds his own beach house. The trouble starts when a small group of nudists begin to terrorize the family, and Renato in particular. As usual, Pippo Franco gets bullied and degraded like no other.

5 out of 10

In the second hearing, Mario Zamboni (Lino Banfi) tells how he was smitten by a German woman in a hotel. Naturally, he had to go to great lengths to have a secret rendezvous without arousing the suspicion of his wife and daughter. The customary running around in hotel hallways with trousers around people's ankles ensue.

4 out of 10

The final court hearing centers around Berto Del Pra (Renato Pozzetto), who is trying to get a wealthy sheik to invest in his shipyard. But the sheik takes a liking to Berto's wife Franscesca (Edwige Fenech) and wants to have her thrown into the bargain. Renato Pozzetto steals the show with his dead-pan delivery. No matter how much he tries to manipulate others, his own fate is always worse.

6 our of 10

Even though none of the protagonists repeat their characters from the previous film, some may argue that Pippo, Lino, Renato and Edwige always play the same part anyway. Pippo panics a lot, Lino lusts after women, Renato sees all his scams backfire and Edwige is just plain gorgeous. However, the stories are a bit more predictable than usual. Probably the biggest surprise is that Edwige Fenech keeps all of her clothes on. It seems that after more than ten years of taking her top of in all of her films, La Fenech finally said no for once.

Average 5 out of 10