Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958)
- Original title
- I soliti ignoti
- Directed by
- Mario Monicelli
- Genre
- drama film, comedy film, heist film
- Country
- Italy
- Runtime
- 1h 41m
- Rated
- e Livre
- Rating
- 8.1 of 10 from 786 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
A group of bumbling small-time thieves in Rome plan to rob a pawn shop. Their efforts go comically wrong as they fumble through the heist.
lightheartedplayfulwrycomediccharmingunderdogspirited
What happens
Big Deal on Madonna Street (Italian: I soliti ignoti; released as Persons Unknown in the UK) is a 1958 Italian comedy caper film directed by Mario Monicelli. Regarded as one of the masterpieces of Italian cinema, the film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. The plot revolves around the comedic mishaps of a group of small-time thieves attempting to burgle a pawn shop in Rome. The main characters are portrayed by Vittorio Gassman, Renato Salvatori, Carlo Pisacane, Tiberio Murgia, and Marcello Mastroianni. The film contributed significantly to the careers of Gassman and Mastroianni, with the former breaking into comedic roles previously considered unsuitable for him. Claudia Cardinale makes a minor appearance as a chaste Sicilian girl constrained by her overprotective brother, portrayed by Murgia. Cardinale achieved fame for her subsequent work. The film's breezy jazz score by composer Piero Umiliani contributed to the development of the jazz soundtracks characteristic of European films in the 1960s and 1970s. Initially doubtful about the film's potential success, the producers strategically featured the comedian Totò on the original poster to generate audience attention. Totò's character serves as a consultant to the heist gang instead of directly joining them. In 2008, it was included in the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage's list of 100 Italian films to be saved, acknowledging its impact on the collective memory of the country between 1942 and 1978. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
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The Thieves (1959)
Move and I'll Shoot (1958)
Fiasco in Milan (1959)
Furto di sera bel colpo si spera (1974)
Maid (1958)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.