Il bidone (1955)

Aging small-time con man Augusto, who swindles peasants, works with two younger men: Roberto, who wants to become the Italian Johnny Ray, and Bruno, nicknamed Picasso, who has a wife and ... See full summary »

Director:

Federico Fellini

Writers:

Federico Fellini, Ennio Flaiano,

Stars:

Broderick Crawford, Giulietta Masina, Richard Basehart

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Broderick Crawford	...	Augusto
Giulietta Masina	...	Iris
Richard Basehart	...	Picasso
Franco Fabrizi	...	Roberto
Sue Ellen Blake	...	Anna
Irene Cefaro	...	Marisa
Alberto De Amicis	...	Rinaldo
Lorella De Luca	...	Patrizia
Giacomo Gabrielli	...	Il Baron Vargas
Riccardo Garrone	...	Riccardo
Paul Grenter
Emilio Manfredi
Lucetta Muratori
Mario Passante
Sara Simoni

Storyline

Aging small-time con man Augusto, who swindles peasants, works with two younger men: Roberto, who wants to become the Italian Johnny Ray, and Bruno, nicknamed Picasso, who has a wife and daughter and wants to paint. Augusto avoids the personal entanglements, spending money at clubs seeking the good life. His attitude changes when he runs into his own daughter, whom he rarely sees, and realizes she's now a young woman and in need of his help to continue her studies. His usual partners are away, so he goes in with others to run a swindle, and they aren't forgiving when he claims he's given the money back to their mark. They leave him beaten, robbed, and alone.

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Plot Keywords:

peasant | imposture | caper comedy | drug dealer | middle age | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

Italian

Release Date:

October 1962 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die Schwindler

Filming Locations:

Acquedotto dell'Acqua Felice, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company Credits

Production Co:

Titanus, Société Générale de Cinématographie (S.G.C.)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min 112 min (original)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Finnish censorship visa register # 045946 delivered in 1960.

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Connections

Referenced in Cinecittà: La casa di F. Fellini (2004)

User Reviews

Hardly a feel good movie but well worth seeing

What a sad film. Broderick Crawford heads a small band of con men but is getting too old and pathetic for the game. He is brilliant in the role and we barely sympathise with him once as he gradually fades away. The men are wretched to their women. There is a woman in the front car seat who gets thrust into the windscreen to accommodate a hoodlum getting or out behind her and another forced to strip by a bunch of guys at a party. The only moments where any sort of humanity show through is when Crawford decked out as a priest gets told the wonder of life by a young crippled girl he is about to ruin. I guess things must have been bad in Italy after the war and actions such as squeezing life savings out of peasants seemed fair game but it is wretched to watch grown men stoop so low. Great film making though and Fellini is so assured a prison sentence is dealt with by use of a fade. Hardly a feel good movie but well worth seeing.