Fantômes à l'italienne

The summary plot provides a decent outline of what you "should expect" from Ghosts, Italian Style. Unfortunately Ms. Loren's talent was totally wasted in this mixed up so-called comedy. It seems the director Renato Castellani kept losing focus on his star Ms. Loren who plays a frustrated but still loving and devoted wife named Maria Lojacono. Instead the director Renato Castellani in his attempt to keep the laughter rolling he focused more on Maria's husband a man named Pasquale Lojacono (played by actor Vittorio Gassman) who is a big loser in the income department and he gets sucked in to live in a haunted mansion for free rent.

Into the picture comes an infatuated former admirer of Maria Lojacono's whose name is Alfredo Mariano (played by Mario Adorf). Alfredo fell in love with Maria when she was a young girl living with the nuns in a monastery that Alfredo still manages and owns. When Maria walks back into Alfredo's heart once again he chases Maria and locates her in the haunted mansion that her husband Pasquale foolishly agreed to rent for free, ghosts or no ghosts.

This film ends up being a poor man's version of any one of the Abbott & Costello 1948-1953 franchise horror/comedy flicks that kept me laughing from beginning to end. In the film Ghosts, Italian Style I could not even force a fake laugh. When Sophia Loren was in any scene at least I smiled though.

Still, I can only rate this film a poor 3 out of 10 rating

Sophia Loren and gaunt, wide-eyed Vittorio Gassman play a destitute married couple whose luck seems to change when Gassman is offered free room and board in an empty, dusty mansion which supposedly houses a ghost. He doesn't tell his wife the history of the spooky place, and she doesn't tell him about a smitten former lover of hers who has moved into an upstairs room, hoping to steal her from her husband. Marital mix-up offers comic misunderstandings, some funny moments, and several beautiful shots of La Loren (although her auburn hair seems to get darker as the film progresses). The half-English/half-dubbed look of the picture is pretty shoddy, and the entire third act (which skips ahead in time, defying all logic and credulity) is nearly crippled by Gassman's over-acting (the biggest mystery is why Sophia married him in the first place). Still, there's a cute in-joke in the final tag, and enough modest laughs throughout to keep the silly circumstances lurching along. **1/2 from ****

Newlyweds Sophia Loren and Vittorio Gassman are struggling to make ends meet after he loses his job. When offered a 17th century mansion rent free, the husband quickly accepts. The catch is that it's supposedly haunted. They move in and soon the husband starts noticing a lot of strange things going on, such as money mysteriously appearing. He chalks this up to ghosts. In reality, it's his wife's wealthy admirer, who is providing for her without the husband's knowledge in hopes she will sleep with him. Later a hooker moves in and the wife believes the husband has become a pimp. It gets even stupider after that.

What a mess. It aspires to be a screwball comedy but this is pretty unfunny stuff. The leads try hard, and Sophia's certainly always nice to look at, but it's just a misfire from start to finish. Avoid unless you're a huge Sophia Loren fan.

Some spotty editing is no help in trying to follow the plot twists that get more and more involved after a good start, with Vittorio Gassman and Sophia Loren moving into a castle that Gassman thinks is haunted by a wealthy nobleman. Actually, it's Loren's lover who is hiding out to be near her and this set-up is the start of a screwball comedy.

Most enjoyable aspect of the film are the performances by Vittorio Gassman and Mario Adorf who garner a lot of laughs out of what seems an impossible situation. Loren merely lends her rather somber presence to the comedy in a straight role that doesn't require comic skill.

The situations are played for laughs but the story convolutions become a bit hard to swallow once the film gets past mid-length and there are too many anti-climactic moments as one gag after another is offered in rather fitful fashion, including an especially silly one for the ending that involves Marcello Mastroianni.

There's a blank time lapse toward the end that seems to indicate a bad case of editing. The story suddenly lurches forward as if omitting details of what happened in between or as though scenes were left on the cutting room floor. Despite this flaw, it manages to be funny thanks to the artful performances of the male leads.

I recently saw this film on Turner Classic Movies. I was surprised to see that even though 37 years have passed, the film still is humorous. I have to admit, the idea is quite far fetched, but Sophia Loren and Vittorio Gassman do a fine job as the happy, (unhappy) couple. One comment stated that this is an "unfunny" comedy. This is the type of film where one must separate themselves from reality. Remember that this is a movie: made with the sole purpose of entertaining the viewer. Ponti, (Sophia's husband) made some excellent, but sadly forgotten little gems, that hopefully will be brought to wider attention in years to follow. This is a good film to see as a double feature, with (1972) "Lady Liberty", a sort of forgotten Sophia Loren film. I am surprised that MGM/UA has not released this film in a letter-boxed format on DVD. Watch for a quick cameo by Marcello Mastroanni.