Malefemmene

Malefemmene wasn't a huge success in Italy and, as far as I know, hasn't been released elsewhere, which is a pity cos it takes one of cinema's tiredest clichés and manages to inject a bit of freshness into it. A slightly ingenuous gangster's wife ends up in prison in a cell full of characters (who, sure, could only ever exist in a film) - they squabble, fight, come to understand each other, cook a lot (this is Italy, after all) and each of them gives away something of what brought them to their present state. What raises it above the predictable is the excellent acting, sharp script and the fact that the film makers manage to avoid the lesbian affair that most films of this genre think is obligatory.

Since Life is Beautiful I haven't seen any Italian movie and for a Portuguese like me, is wonderful to listen to that language, as the Spanish... I was missing something like that and don't even know it; while that period, I've seen some Italian based films like Roman Holliday or Ripley's Game, but it wasn't the same...

It was a surprise for me, the movie was full of tension and the screenplay was a truly innovation of some older from Hollywood. Nonetheless, it has too many main characters, was a little bit confuse, sometimes boring and the director didn't take full advantage of the potential of some actors; I even found myself lost more than once...

Anyway, if someday somebody does the re-make, it could be very promising...

Nice attempt, it worth's a carefully look!