This film of Alessandro Blassetti fully deserves its status as one of the '100 Italian films to be saved'. Its pedigree is impressive. The ubiquitous Zavattini had a hand in the story which has been adapted by Guiseppe Amato with yet another marvellous score by Alessandro Cicognini. Czech Vaclav Vich is behind the camera and production design is by Virgilio Marchi. The gallery of characters is wonderfully observed. Gino Cervi has never been better and there are standout performances by Adriana Benetti as Maria, Aldo Silvani and Giacinto Molteni as father and grandfather. This is quite simply a masterpiece of early Neo-Realism. Unforgettable. A film very much of its time but timeless. It spawned a few remakes the best of which is undoubetdly that of Mario Soldati in the fifties starring Fernandel as the kind-hearted salesman but even that version suffers by comparison. Coincidentally Fernandel and Cervi were to play opposite each other in the Don Camillo series. Three other versions, two from Bollywood and one from Hollywood are worthless.
Review of The Bigamist
