108 mins |
Rated
PG
Directed by Melvin Frank
Starring Lee Grant, Naomi Stevens, Shelley Winters, Telly Savalas, Gina Lollobrigida, Philippe Leroy, Peter Lawford, Janet Margolin, Phil Silvers, Giovanna Galletti, Dale Cummings, Marian McCargo, Renzo Palmer, James Mishler, Inna Alexeievna, Ennio Antonelli, Gianni Di Segni, Vittorio Fanfoni
During World War II, an Italian villager (Italian beauty Gina Lollobrigida in an award-winning role) befriends three American soldiers. Later, when unsure which of them fathered her daughter, she accepts support checks from all three soldiers. Twenty years later, a reunion unexpectedly brings the three veterans -- and their wives and children -- back to Italy and Mrs. Campbell panics as she endeavors to keep her lively past from her daughter.
"Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell" is a charming reminder of what movie comedies used to be like. We're in a period now of very tense, uptight film comedy, movies so determined to be "contemporary" you can almost taste it. The most recent Debbie Reynolds and Doris Day movies were cases in point, filled with hippies, flower children and all the signs of Now but none of the substance. Mostly these "contemporary" comedies are boring and terribly square.
"Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell," on the other hand, could have been made 10 years ago. It depends on the traditional strong points of movie comedy: well-defined situation, good dialog, emphasis on characters. And it even tells a story.
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During World War II, an Italian villager (Italian beauty Gina Lollobrigida in an award-winning role) befriends three American soldiers. Later, when unsure which of them fathered her daughter, she accepts support checks from all three soldiers. Twenty years later, a reunion unexpectedly brings the three veterans -- and their wives and children -- back to Italy and Mrs. Campbell panics as she endeavors to keep her lively past from her daughter.
"Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell" is a charming reminder of what movie comedies used to be like. We're in a period now of very tense, uptight film comedy, movies so determined to be "contemporary" you can almost taste it. The most recent Debbie Reynolds and Doris Day movies were cases in point, filled with hippies, flower children and all the signs of Now but none of the substance. Mostly these "contemporary" comedies are boring and terribly square.
"Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell," on the other hand, could have been made 10 years ago. It depends on the traditional strong points of movie comedy: well-defined situation, good dialog, emphasis on characters. And it even tells a story.