Turidi (1998)

Directed by: Paolo Taviani, Vittorio Taviani | 100 minutes | drama | Actors: Antonio Albanese, Giuseppe Cederna, Luca Zingaretti, Dario Cantarelli, Elena Ghiaurov, Sabrina Ferilli, Turi Ferro, Lello Arena, Steve Spedicato, Orio Scaduto, Ludovico Caldereda, Roberto Fuzio, Pietro De Silva, Luciano Virgilio, Roberto Nobile, Carmelo Carnemolla , Biancamaria D’Amato, Alessandra Costanzo, Filippo Dini, Andrea Di Casa, Riccardo Mosca, Gianluca Valenti, Frida Bruno, Nanà Torbica, Valentina Barresi, Elvira Anna, Donatella Furino, Maurilio Scaduto, Elena Feo, Omero Antonutti

‘Tu ridi’ by the Italian brothers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani is the film adaptation of two stories by the Sicilian writer Luigi Pirandello (1867-1936) and a successor to their earlier Pirandello adaptation ‘KAOS’. In contrast to that film, ‘Tu ridi’ was received a lot less well, which is probably mainly due to the depressed tone and the ending of both segments, which can be called anything but cheerful. The title is a direct quote from the first segment of the film, when Mariska (Elena Ghiaurov) bites her husband that he was laughing again that night. ‘Tu ridi’ in Dutch means “you smile”.

As mentioned, there are two segments: ‘Felice’ and ‘I due sequestri’ (the two kidnappings), with the last segment actually also consisting of two separate stories, so that there are actually three short films that touch on approximately the same themes. The first story ‘Felice’ has something tragicomic to it, with Antonio Albanese playing a fine role as Felice (“happy”), who is unhappy as the bookkeeper of the theater where he once triumphed as a baritone. His wife doesn’t understand his laughter and regularly scolds him in her own language, to which he can only mutter whether she would please berate him in Italian. It’s a wry kind of humor that the Taviani brothers aim for, especially when Felice’s limping colleague Tobis (Giuseppe Cederna) is introduced. Tobis needs a cane to walk and every morning as he climbs a set of stairs, he is harassed by three men (one of whom is the theater manager). It is a sad situation, which also becomes distressing for Felice himself when he finds out why he actually has to laugh so much at night. Not out of joy, as it turns out. When Felice leaves Rome after his marriage is on the rocks, a new hope seems to arise for him for a moment. But somewhere you can already sense that this is a short-lived revival in a desolate life.

The moment ‘Felice’ leaves the viewer slightly melancholy, there is a rough transition to the next segment ‘I due sequestri’, in which a boy receives a computer from his uncle, with which he can make the most beautiful drawings. It’s a misleading opening, because the “uncle” is actually his kidnapper and the boy is the son of a regretful optant. The purpose of the kidnapping is to make sure that the father does not say anything to Justice in prison. This story is intertwined with another kidnapping that takes place a hundred years earlier, when an old country doctor (Turi Ferro) is kidnapped in the same mountains by three brothers. He soon recognizes the boys and when it turns out that the doctor’s family cannot afford the ransom, the brothers’ father decides that the doctor should stay with them indefinitely. Here too, the story seems to be given a happier twist, but soon the misery returns in a pitiful denouement. This sad ending is even surpassed by the ending of the contemporary kidnapping story. This leaves the viewer with a somewhat bad taste in the mouth because of so much misery. There is very little to laugh about during the playing time of ‘Tu ridi’. Or it must be a grim laugh, because the humor with which the film is seasoned is inky and inky black. The acting of Albanian and Ferro in particular is excellent and it is not difficult to empathize with their worries. The segments are beautifully captured by Giuseppe Lanci, aided by the natural beauty of the Italian landscape.

‘Tu ridi’ is a strong adaptation of Pirandello’s work, which convinces and impresses. Unfortunately, it remains two segments and three stories, which thematically touch each other, but in fact can better be viewed separately. The choice to group the stories as one film doesn’t work out so well. The tone will certainly not be to everyone’s taste, but those who adjust to it will still get a certain satisfaction from the film. The Taviani brothers won the “Best Director” award at the “Mar de la Plata” film festival in Argentina.