Olè (2006)

Director:

Carlo Vanzina

Writers:

Carlo Vanzina (writer)
Enrico Vanzina (writer)

Release Date:

15 December 2006 (Italy)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot Keywords:

Cinepanettone

Cast

Massimo Boldi	...	Archimede Formigoni
Vincenzo Salemme	...	Salvatore Rondinella
Daryl Hannah	...	Maggie Granger
Enzo Salvi	...	Enzo 'Figaro'
Natalia Estrada	...	Ana Montez
Francesca Lodo	...	Jennifer
Brigitta Boccoli	...	Margherita
Armando De Razza	...	Diego De La Vega
David Hodges	...	Patrono Di Nozze
Ashley Burritt	...	Nicole
Niccolò Contrino	...	Ugo
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gorka Aguinagalde	...	Poliziotto
Alfredo Alba	...	Regista
Nicoletta Boris	...	Professoressa Cataldi
Ricard Borràs
Goldie Chan	...	Cable Car Rider
Kim Grogg	...	Miss Sally
Simonetta Guarino	...	Clotilde
Andrea Langi	...	Janet
George McDaniel	...	Senatore Morrison
Luis Molteni	...	Preside
Clelia Piscitello	...	Evelina
Jaume Queralt	...	Cameriere
Big Spence	...	College Student
Federico Zanandrea	...	Mongini

Runtime:

Italy:104 min

Country:

Italy

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color

Company:

Medusa Film

Soundtrack:

Torero

A waste of time

For 21 years the artistic duet Massimo Boldi/Christian De Sica brought out a Christmastime movie, made with the same depressing formula of lowest level comedies. In 2006 they split with mutual accusations and an open challenge at box-office: Boldi's vs De Sica's film. While the first flopped with Olé, the second had a good (unexplainable) response from the audience.

Olé, actually, is a painful, silly comedy about a school-trip in Spain by an Italian high-school class, and their two professors: Boldi and Neapolitan actor Vincenzo Salemme, long time rivals for a colleague's love. At a museum they run into a group of American female students with a beautiful Arts professor (Daryl Hannah) and the two classes become friends, detouring to Ibiza.

I can't understand why Hannah embarked in such a disastrous project, but at least she was one of the few reasons to stay awake at theater. The second could be Natalia Estrada, the beautiful Spanish-Italian showgirl here as a paparazzi's victim celebrity.

The final scene is an homage to "The Graduate" with Boldi at Hoffman's place; director Vanzina wanted to put "Mrs. Robinson" song too, but for royalties impediments he couldn't. Also, the fire-walking scene quoted another great film, Monicelli's Brancaleone at the Crusades.

Olé could have been a good light movie without the trite gags about Viagra or the crappy, improbable situations; but there's little to laugh, in every sense.