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I am not one for Italian movies but this was a cracker. If you have to go by the sub-titles then pay attention at the beginning when the soldiers are in the process of securing the town and they engage a chicken.....its a bit of humour that has stayed with me for years since watching it.

It is one of those feel good movies that you just don't want to end...highly recommended.

In an age where any discerning movie goer struggles to find a decent movie at a video shop because of all the crassy Hollywood type movies that are churned out, this is a must watch movie.

Honestly I don't know how this movie could have been translated into English or other languages, since I'm referring to the original, Italian, version of it. I never expected any American so-called critic to full understand what European, and specifically southern-European movies can be about, since we never based the quality of a movie on the amount of car chases, shooting, explosions, well polished (but fake) dialogues and so on. Our cinema is far less shiny but more down-to-Earth. The director, through the words of the character of Lt. Farina, in the very beginning of the movie starts telling a story, which could have been truly happened that way. Why? Because in Italian movies actors act like normal everyday people is. So it appears pretty credible what happened in the movie, between acts of humanity, friendship, inner struggles. Of Course there are typical elements of Italian culture throughout the plot, as the soccer matches, the highly informal language, the warm friendship, and of course to whom is totally unaware of Italian culture, these can appear as childish and pretty silly. But if you look deeply into that, if you leave all prejudices aside, you will discover a beautiful postcard which paints a wonderful small Greek island, in which Italian and Greek people (re)discover their common cultural origins. With the WW2 as background (but there are no fights at all). All in all, reading about American reviews about this movie, in which the writers looked at this movie with a smile of superiority, it reminded me about the part in which the two British sailors came to rescue the marooned soldiers, point at them with a sort of disgust and justify their feelings with: "Italians".

I think IMDb explains the plot best: An Italian ship leaves a handful of soldiers in a little island; their mission is to spot enemy ships and to hold the island in case of attack. The village of the island seems abandoned and there isn't a single enemy in sight, so the soldiers begin to relax a little. Actually, the island isn't deserted and when the Greeks understand that those Italians are harmless, they came out of their hiding places in the mountains and continue their peaceful lives. Soon the soldiers discover that being left behind in a God-forgotten Greek island isn't such a bad thing, after all...

The film won the Oscar for Best Foreign film in 1991 and I'm pretty sure this wasn't the best foreign film of that year, but I can understand why it won. The film captures something I think many people can relate to or understand...escape. These soldiers find an escape from the war. Which is something anybody who has been in a war can relate to. And, the film also captures the freedom these men have. For the moment they're at the island they can also escape from their everyday responsibilities and do what they like best. That's something most people want. For instance, the lieutenant enjoys painting and at the island he gets the opportunity to paint the church. Instead of fighting a war or worrying about how to pay the bills he is doing what he enjoys best, painting. The film may not be the best foreign film of 1991, but it is a very warm-hearted film that you will enjoy.

3 (***) out of (****)

A squad of Italian soldiers arrives to occupy a remote Greek island during WW2, but soon goes native as the immediacy of the war slowly recedes from their island paradise. I enjoyed this film immensely. I hope this is only available in the original Italian with subtitles. The dialog among the soldiers is so quintessentially Italian and funny, that a dubbed version would lose almost everything in translation. The locations are terrific, the plot development is subtle but never boring, and it's a joy to watch a film that encourages you to lean forward and savor it, rather than one that pins you in your seat with technology and effects.

The outline of this film appears in other postings, so I will just add my two drachma by way of critical appraisal. In case you are in any doubt, Mediterraneo ranks in my best three ever - a magnificent film. If you never see it, part of your life will have been unlived.

Mediterraneo epitomises the difference between Hollywood and the demands of a largely US audience and the subtler approach of the European director/writer who seeks simply to express him/herself through the medium. I read two reviews in the Washington Post both of which managed to misunderstand the film completely, one going so far as to characterise the cast as "Marx Brothers". In fact, they are probably the finest ensemble of characters I have ever seen in film - a completely disparate group of individuals who nearly all manage to find spiritual (and sexual) fulfulment in the sensuality of Aegean island life.

The film is multi-layered and, the more obvious ones, such as the powerful anti-war message and the venality of post-Fascist Italy are often mentioned. But no-one has ever picked up on the phrase "una face, una race" which is repeated throughout the film. This is the nostrum that Italians and Greeks have a common Mediterranean heritage (come on Washington Post hacks - didn't the title give you a clue?) and that there is an enormous irony in the Italians - who rightly pride themselves on the antiquity of their civilisation - seeking to subdue another culture whose origins are 2000 years older.

This is underlined by the easy participation of the soldiers in both high and low Greek culture, .....the painting of the frescoes in the church (n.b. the Orthodox Church predating the Holy Roman Empire by centuries - clever eh!) and the wonderful unifying theme of football, which only a European or South American viewer could truly appreciate.

The group's ambivalent attitude to sexual mores adds to the sense of the place as essentially a home for Greco-Roman sensuality - a fact which is gloriously exposed with the later juxtaposition of our band of heroes with the starched British Royal Navy officers who arrive to remove them from the island.

I have not seen any mention in other reviews of the beautiful cadence of the Italian dialogue - as lilting as the bazouki music which accompanies much of the film.

The sense of disillusionment that takes over the film at the end is very powerful and it is no accident that Salvatore shows us the Lieutenant returning to the island on a ferry full of burnt-pink tourists.

This is a film that can only truly be appreciated if you have a feeling for, and understanding, of European culture. This is a film for grown-ups.

Mediterraneo demonstrates that though box-office grosses for European films are small (unless it is something produced explicity for a US audience, like the truly dreadful Four Weddings) our directors have managed to stay true to their craft.

If there are not enough car chases or shoot outs for you, look out for the five-star ratings in the Washington Post.

Fact 1: Only 10% of Americans possess a passport: Fact 2: None of them review for the Washington Post.

An outstanding movie. The film flows like water, masterfully directed.Watching this film was enjoyable and it seems like an escape from reality.In them we can identify our desires and our feelings. Escape from the world of war. Shows how little is enough to be happy. Luzers in the war are actually winners and lucky people. People who would kill other peoples yesterday, show us real face, ordinary people with same wishes like ours. This movie proof that is not necessary to spend millions of $ to make great movie. For me personally it is a pleasure to watch this movie any time, sometime I feel that I would like to find similar place today to escape from our modern, hectic life. All in all, great movie, I wouldn't change anything.

Different Kind Of Comedy-Drama Thoughtful Anti-War Message Mixed in with Some Beautiful Island Scenery An enjoyable and very different WWII film.

This was a pretty solid comedy-drama about a group of Italian soldiers who spent World War II on a Greek Island. That doesn't sound too exciting, but it's interesting and there are some very funny lines in the film.

Like many of the European films I own, it features good storytelling and interesting characters although most of the men in here are just stupid, or simply a different mindset than what we have over here. People talk to each other differently than what I've ever heard in the U.S.

The female lead, Vanna Barba, looks terrific as does the camera-work in general. I didn't see a "rating" on my VHS box but I would rate it an "R" for usages of the f-word and some brief nudity. Any film that looks this good on VHS should be seen on DVD, which I look forward to doing.

Italian cinematography always had interesting and beside all great movies. "Mediterraneo" is definitely one of them with strong antiwar message. A movie that Americans cannot make cause they haven't experienced wars like the ones that were led on European ground.

Story starts when Italian ship leaves a handful of soldiers in a little Greek island during World War II. Italian soldiers must hold that island by any cost. Island seems to be deserted and when their sheep gets destroyed by enemies, soldiers must find a way to live on that island. Soon they found out that the island is not deserted when Greeks came out of their hiding places in the mountains. All of the inhabitants are women, children and old men, so soldiers began to relax and finally live their lives.

Gabriele Salvatores made a movie situated during a war without any war scene, presenting the Greek island as heaven on Earth for those untypical soldiers. All of them have their dreams and desires, but as time pasts by, only one soldier always tries to leave at all cost (he wants to come home to his wife). Antonio Farina falls in love with prostitute Vassilissa (gorgeus Vanna Barba) and they even stopped counting days on that island, so they don't know what is happening in the war or in outside world. This island present oasis, imaginary world where everyone is happy. Like some sort of utopia.

So from the first to last scene Salvatores directs this movie with no mistakes, cause he had great scenario, actors and he found beautiful location in Greece. I specially liked Diego Abatantuono in role of Nicola Lorusso, but I must also mention Claudio Bigagli and Giuseppe Cederna. Every single person who worked on this drama with elements of comedy created a movie that we all can watch whenever we want to escape from to real world. But is there a place like this on Earth? Yes, I think there are plenty of places like this, but we have to look for them cause nothing good comes easy.

A cadre of inept WWII Italian soldiers set up an outpost on a small Greek island where they discover all the young men have left and are quickly assimilated by the population for the duration. A best foreign film Oscar winner, "Mediterraneo" is a serene and amusing picture postcard scrapbook memoir which American audiences may find too understated to make contending with subtitles worthwhile. Recommended for viewers who are into Europics.

"Mediterraneo", which we saw during its debut run locally, has stayed fresh as when we first saw it. This small, endearing film has a lot going for it. In fact, it makes a perfect statement against WWII, or any war, for that matter, without being in one's face. The subtlety of this film stays long in the viewer's mind.

We are presented a group of Italian soldiers on a mission to set a base in a small, and apparently uninhabited island in the Aegean Sea, not too far from Italy, but millions of years away in the way it has stayed primitive enough to offer anything to these men. As soldiers, under the command of Raffaelle, these are not the typical professional soldiers. In fact, these men discover themselves and a world they didn't know existed during their time in the island.

What surprises the soldiers is not to encounter anyone living in the village facing the sea, where they disembark. It becomes clear everyone is hiding from them. When the populace discover these men are harmless they return and embrace the invaders with open arms. After all, they feel the Italians share a lot in common with them.

The men, obviously abandoned, and lacking means of transportation, get stuck in the island. In fact, they don't realize, but when the Italian aviator arrives in his one engine plane, he is amazed how many years have passed since they arrived at that remote spot.

This small film is a delight to watch. Diego Abatantuono makes a great Lorusso. Claudio Bigati, is Raffaele, the man with an artistic eye, who sees the beauty of the classical Greek design. Vanna Barba plays Vassilessa, the local whore who falls in love with the shy Farina(Giuseppe Cederna). The rest of the cast does a good job under Mr. Salvatores' direction.

Watch this film as it will delight fans of Mr. Salvatores and the Italian cinema.

A group of Italians invade a Greek island during World War II, and soon, after encountering no resistance, they turn their attention to themselves and their interests, thus continuing with their lives as war rages on elsewhere in the European continent.

What I found really interesting about this film is that the writers/director almost seemed to go out of their way to not be stereotypical in the depiction of the characters.

This is not a movie that demands much from the viewer. Essentially, it is light, and probably good for a quiet evening at home.

Characters are funny and the settings are beautiful, but the plot and the story are clichè, old fashioned. Above all, actors speak with a EIGHTIES italian slang and accent, while the movie is set in Greece in the FOURTIES .

Absolutely overrated, it did not deserve an Oscar: we made much better films here in Italy (see "L'ultimo bacio") !

I was awake at 3:00AM with insomnia the first time I saw this film. When the English subtitles appeared, I thought, "I don't want to read a movie, I want to watch one." A few minutes later, I was hooked. Now, I own a copy and watch it every few months. It's a story about a group of men, in soldiers uniforms, sent to a Greek Island of no significance, who are forgotten about and left for years. They adapt as humans do when placed in a different environment. Because they are Italian, they do it as only Italians can, with simplicity and grace. I'm glad to have it my video collection.

A beautiful movie that addresses life's simple pleasures.

Marooned on an island, this band of soldiers are left with nothing to do and no war to fight. They mull around waiting for their apparent "call up" while soaking up along the Mediterranean. As their thoughts of war wane, they begin to explore the meaning of life.

With minimal dialogue, the juxtaposition between death (war) and life (the sea) is remarkably achieved through brilliant cinematography. With the sea as a backdrop, we are asked to question our existence and deduce our priorities.

This film will make you go for a holiday!

Whatever you can ask for in a film is sure to be found in Mediterraneo. This is certainly one of the best European films of the decade; very warm, appealing, and hilarious. The story of a small group of Italian soldiers (they're not actually very soldier-like) stranded on a beautiful Greek island during Second World War is very nicely depicted by director Gabriele Salvatores. The characters of Nicola Lorusso, Raffaele Montini and the soldier in love with Vassilisa are great. The island itself is beautiful, which calls to some incredible cinematography. The musical score is spectacular, a delicious medley of Italian and Greek folkloric music. My verdict: 10 / 10

This Italian film has a pretty title for a start, referring to the name of a sea. Even though it has military men in it, I didn't realize it takes place during World War II. The story is set in Kastellórizo (an island in Greece), surrounded by the magnificent Aegean Sea. Therefore, the scenario is one of its best attributes: Greece and the Aegean Sea are owners of a legendary beauty.

I also loved Vanna Barba as Vassilissa. She is gorgeous and so hot. I thought she was Italian. She certainly looks Italian instead of Greek and yet she is Greek. Greeks are usually VERY unattractive, so it's quite an impact to see a Greek woman this beautiful, this hot.

There is some nudity in the film, which is great, as those hot scenes allow us to see the lovely Vanna Barba nude.

As a movie, this was okay. It sort of seems like a comedy with soldiers, a bit in the style of 'Blackadder'.

Mediterraneo is all about the sea.

It is actually part of a trilogy from Salvatores (with Marrakech Express and Turne') about those who run away.

It's about friendships, it's about people living their life in this beautiful planet. Enjoying the stars and the deep blue sea.

It's about the stupidity of war, and how soldiers are foremost people and they should never forget that. (Notice the line on how good it would be if you trade weapons for hashish)

It's about man being the same over millennia, since what makes him feel alive and happy has not changed a bit. Since what so many people fret about is the ugly uselessness of power. (Notice the ancient Greek poetries that are read at night)

This movie is all about the greatest sea there is, the sea that will always be at the center of everyone's life. It's the sea for man. The oceans are not for man's size.

It's the sun, it's blue and white.

This is a nice Italian movie, with some beautiful scenes and adequate acting. It would seem that some scenes have been cut in a clumsy effort to speed up the story. One wonders what the Academy Awards jury were thinking when they awarded the Oscar for best foreign language film to "Mediterraneo", rather than to "Raise the Red Lantern". I could easily name a lot of films from 1991 that weren't even nominated and deserved the Oscar more than this movie: La belle noiseuse, Delicatessen, Europa, Obloko-raj, Toto le héros, Tous les matins du monde, Urga, Merci la vie, and maybe even Go Trabi Go or probably a dozen others I haven't seen. Still, "Mediterraneo" might give you about 90 minutes of light-weight entertainment; so do watch it if it's raining and you're feeling lazy and have nothing better to do. But don't expect a great classical movie that changes your life.

This film reminds me there are still wonderful films that are true works of art. Beautiful open eyes dream on the worst nightmare of war that becomes the most beautiful reality. Great directing and beautiful colors are just following warmest human atmosphere obtained. It is hard to watch this film and not get into it. Simple life and most delicate feelings are what we love about it. Great acting and story that proves that perfection lies in the simple things. Did we make our lives that complicated that we don't want to try beauty of simplicity offered? Our heroes in this film decided to do so in pretty unconventional situation. Watch Mediterraneo and say how much do we really need to be happy. I say 10 out of 10.

This film begins during the Italian invasion of Greece in 1940 with a small ragtag group of Italian soldiers being put ashore the isolated and unimportant Greek island of Mighisti in the Aegean Sea with the mission of occupying it and reporting all observations of enemy shipping in the area. However, when their radio breaks they soon find themselves completely out of contact with their superiors and left all by themselves on what appears to be a completely deserted island. At least that is what they initially think. However, once the local Greeks discover that these Italian soldiers are no real threat to them they come out of hiding and not only reveal themselves but also adopt them into their way of life. And with no young adult males on the island some of these Italian soldiers soon realize that there are worse places to spend their army service. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that, although this wasn't a great comedy by any means, it was still an entertaining film due in large part to the thoughtful underlying anti-war message mixed in with the beautiful scenery. Likewise, the fact that it won an Academy Award for "Best Foreign Language Film" also attests to its overall appeal as well. In any case, I enjoyed this particular movie and for that reason I have rated it accordingly. Above average.

Incompetent Italian soldiers arrive on Greek island and learn to appreciate sex, dope, and football in the sun. That's it. Lots of scenes that you know are supposed to be funny, but they're just not.

If this film had been made in 1967, there might have been some excuse for the total lack of narrative interest. Having been made in 1991, it is unforgivable. The only decent thing in this film is the scenery. The plot, such as it is, is predictable and boring in the extreme. The male characters are all cardboard stereotypes, and the female characters are so thin as to be almost non-existent.

If you start watching it and you think it's maybe not that good, believe me it gets much worse.

It seems incredible that the same director went on to make "Io non ho paura" ("I am not afraid"), which is excellent. Just go straight to that, and forget this early mistake.