Mambo Italiano (2003)

The son of Italian immigrants to Canada struggles to find the best way to reveal to his parents that he's gay.

Director:

Émile Gaudreault

Writers:

Steve Galluccio (play), Steve Galluccio (screenplay)

Stars:

Luke Kirby, Peter Miller, Ginette Reno

1 win & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Luke Kirby	...	Angelo Barberini
Ginette Reno	...	Maria Barberini
Paul Sorvino	...	Gino Barberini
Mary Walsh	...	Lina Paventi
Peter Miller	...	Nino Paventi
Claudia Ferri	...	Anna Barberini
Sophie Lorain	...	Pina Lunetti
Tim Post	...	Peter
Tara Nicodemo	...	Yolanda / Woman in Airplane / Jolene
Pierrette Robitaille	...	Rosetta
Dino Tavarone	...	Giorgio
Mark Camacho	...	Johnny Christofaro
Michel Perron	...	Father Carmignani
Lou Vani	...	Marco
Diane Lavallée	...	Mélanie

Storyline

Angelo Barberini is the oddball son of Italian immigrants Gino and Maria, who inadvertently ended up in Canada rather than the States. Angelo shocks his parents by moving out on his own without getting married, and shocks them further still when he reveals that he's gay. But his boyfriend, policeman Nino Paventi isn't as ready to come out of the closet -- especially not to his busybody mother, Lina.

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Plot Keywords:

italian stereotype | help line | closeted homosexual | gay | italian | 

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Taglines:

It's not a democracy, it's a family

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and sexual situations

Did You Know?

Trivia

Though it isn't mentioned in the movie one of the main reasons Montreal has such a large Italian community is that the province of Quebec, where Montreal is located, was one of the main ports of entry for immigrants to Canada for most of the 19th and 20th centuries.

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Goofs

In two shots, the Italian flag is shown back to front. On the television, and on the computer monitor the Italian flag is shown as red, white, and green. The colors of the flag are green, white, and red.

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Quotes

Pina: Me, I can convert anybody. Give me an hour in the Gay Village and there's not gonna be a Gay Village no more! Hai capito?

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Connections

References My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)

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Soundtracks

I Will Survive
Written by Dino Fekaris, Freddie Perren
Universal-Polygram International Publishing Inc.
On behalf of itself and Perren-Vibes Music
Performed by Cake
Courtesy of Volcano Entertainment III, L.L.C.

User Reviews

One thinks it's easy to be gay in Canada - and is mistaken!

Unlike some other commentators, I knew nothing about this film except it's a comedy about gay men. So I didn't expect much, but got all the more! First of all, I was glad to see that the main character was neither the classic handsome Hollywood macho, nor a feminine gay man but just an average-looking young guy. The other guy does look more cliché, but then he's the one who ends up in the closet, feeling guilty about being gay. The acting is superb throughout the film.

Someone commented that it's not all that funny. Well, it's true - coming out and breaking up with family or your lover are always painful, and I don't like films which ignore this side of the story. If you're deeply touched by Angelo's story, then it has performed the task such films, I think, are supposed to do: to make the audience more sensitive to gay people's issues. At the same time, though, it's pretty funny - just like your own coming out is often funny looking back. The confession scene is hilarious, and I laughed my heart out at the gay helpline scene - working for a GLBT helpline myself, I can assure you: this is just as distorted as the image of the Italian community. (We could use that scene for training purposes, though: what not to do...)

Details

Official Sites:

Official Site

Country:

Canada

Language:

English Italian French

Release Date:

19 September 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

Mambo italiano

Filming Locations:

Le Village Gai, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

CAD5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$406,651, 8 June 2003

Gross USA:

$6,253,026

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$9,638,258

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinémaginaire Inc., Equinoxe Films, The Harold Greenberg Fund

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1