We are not “modern young people” who don’t likeor nativity scene. And the comedies of Eduardo De Filippo for age reasons we have seen them done by others, at the theater and on TV. Or we enjoyed those of the master recorded in the sixties and seventies.
But after the talking parrot, the winged pacifier, theporompompero” and the ballet of “I don’t pay you!” with Sergio Castellitto aired on Rai 1directed by Edoardo De AngelisPicomedia production, the question is obligatory: but why?
The theme of the dream, the soul and the mystery, or the dialogue between Don Ferdinando, the lawyer Strumillo and the priest Don Raffaele in the film broadcast on Rai 1 reduced to a “locked up” senseless general. If Don Ferdinando screams, the priest screams, Donna Concetta – instead – whispers. And even here we don’t understand why.
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In many cases the comedy goes outside its confines and becomes something else, perhaps a sketch or perhaps something else; it also makes the spectator want to scream, exclaiming “even less!”, especially when Castellitto starts humming at the piano. The director’s choice almost seems to say: the original script doesn’t make today’s viewers laugh, I have to put my own spin on it. “You don’t make me better,” Eduardo used to say to those who changed his lines.
De Angelis and Castellitto had a huge opportunity with the three comedies entrusted to them by Rai. “Christmas in the Cupiello house”, “Saturday, Sunday and Monday” and “I don’t pay you” could have been the subject for films in the wake of tradition or, legitimately, products of profound innovation, as has been done for centuries with Shakespeare.
Instead, the strangest path was chosen scratched: the fear of distorting (we are still in prime time on Rai 1 and Auditel has its own rules) has mixed with the desire to distance itself from the original. This is probably why the triptych produced by Picomedia was indigestible. I don’t cry.
The parrot, the pacifier, the dromedary, the whole zoo (maybe De Filippo would have liked it, we know he loved cats), the piano, the bagpipe player.
The Castellitto-De Angelis duo was the pineapple pizza of Edwardian production. There will definitely be those who liked it and those who will like it. Fortunately, however, it is on Raiplay streaming the 1964 version with a prodigious Luisa Conte and an exceptional Ugo D’Alessio.
There is one very beautiful thing that is worth noting in this production: the last character (Don Saverio, who with De Angelis is not just a painting but takes shape) played by Antonio Casagrande, who died in 2022 at the age of ninety-one. Casagrande worked with De Filippo in the sixties, he was among other things wonderful Luigi Strada in “Always say yes to him”. His exit was in the name of Eduardo, moreover sharing the film with his son Maurizio who plays the priest, Don Raffaele.
Professional journalist, head of Naples service at Fanpage.it. He teaches ethics and deontology of journalism at LUMSA. He has a newsletter entitled “Greetings from Naples”. He is co-author of the books Il Casalese (Edizioni Cento Autori, 2011); Novantadue (Castelvecchi, 2012), Le mani nella città and L’Invisibile (Round Robin, 2013-2014). He won the Giancarlo Siani journalistic award in 2007 and the Paolo Giuntella and Marcello Torre awards in 2012.
2024-01-02 22:19:24
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