12 + 1 (1969)

Young philanderer inherits 13 ratty antique chairs and decides to sell them off to get some money. Later he learns that one of them contains jewels worth a lot of money, so he begins an ... See full summary »

Directors:

Nicolas Gessner, Luciano Lucignani

Writers:

Marc Behm (screenplay), Denis Norden (screenplay) (as Dennis Norden)

Stars:

Vittorio Gassman, Sharon Tate, Orson Welles

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vittorio Gassman	...	Mario Beretti
Sharon Tate	...	Pat
Orson Welles	...	Maurice Markau
Vittorio De Sica	...	Carlo De Seta - The Commendatore
Terry-Thomas	...	Albert
Mylène Demongeot	...	Judy
Tim Brooke-Taylor	...	Jackie
John Steiner	...	Stanley Duncan
Grégoire Aslan	...	Psychiatrist (as Gregoire Aslan)
William Rushton	...	Lionel Bennet
Lionel Jeffries	...	Randomhouse
Ottavia Piccolo	...	Stefanella De Seta
Catana Cayetano	...	Véronique
Claude Berthy	...	François
Marzio Margine	...	Pasqualino

Storyline

Young philanderer inherits 13 ratty antique chairs and decides to sell them off to get some money. Later he learns that one of them contains jewels worth a lot of money, so he begins an adventurous trip to regain possession of the chair. On the way he meets many strange people, some who want to help and some who want to swindle him.

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Plot Keywords:

chair | breasts | beard | long hair | barber | 

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Taglines:

Orson Welles, Sharon Tate, and Terry-Thomas won't take this sitting down.

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Sharon Tate arrived in Rome for filming near the end of March 1969, she was about three months pregnant and beginning to show. Because the script called for several semi-nude scenes, the director arranged to film those scenes first. As filming (and her pregnancy) progressed, the director obscured Tate's stomach with large purses and scarves. This is most apparent in the scene following her ride in the furniture mover's van.

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Alternate Versions

Some versions of the film have the final scene reedited to remove the final image. The final image showed Mario looking exactly like Charles Manson.

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Connections

Version of Keep Your Seats, Please! (1936)

User Reviews

"Who says money can't buy happiness?" ... "Those who have neither."

Barber in New York City inherits his great aunt's estate in Europe, but arrives only to find a run-down residence and thirteen matching chairs. Upon selling the chairs to a local antique store, he finds a note telling him that one of the chairs holds $100K under the yellow upholstery. Would-be screwball farce is missing most of its screws, however the cast is intriguing. This served as the final film of actress Sharon Tate before her murder in August 1969; if the movie is no longer very funny, at least we get a good look at this beauty near the end of her life. Tossing off quips and jumping into pools and beds, Tate is very frisky and cute, but hasn't much of a character to play. The narrative is so gloppy, we can't even be sure how other mercenary players find out about the hidden treasure, and lead Vittorio Gassman doesn't have the loose body language needed for an arms-flailing farce. Portions of the film are well-directed, though with so much cutting, over-dubbing, and globe-trotting, it isn't any wonder the picture leaves viewers exhausted and unsatisfied. ** from ****

Details

Country:

Italy France

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 May 1970 (USA)

Also Known As:

12 + 1

Filming Locations:

Stafford Hotel, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Compagnia Generale Finanziaria Cinematografica, Comptoir Français de Productions Cinématographiques (CFPC), Girouxfilms

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)