'' Pensavo fosse amore, invece era un calesse'' (''I thought it was love, but it was a barouche'') is a

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

comedy drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

. It is the last film directed by Massimo Troisi. For his performance Angelo Orlando won the David di Donatello for best supporting actor.

Plot

Tommaso and Cecilia are young engaged couple in Naples, leading an apparently regular life. He has a restaurant in Borgo Marinari near the area of

Castel dell'Ovo Castel dell'Ovo ("Egg Castle") is a seafront castle in Naples, located on the former island of Megaride, now a peninsula, on the Gulf of Naples in Italy. The castle's name comes from a legend about the Roman poet Virgil, who had a reputation in ...

. Tommaso's (single) friend Amedeo owns a book shop nearby; Amedeo's teenager sister, Chiara, is in love with Tommaso. Tommaso and Cecilia are about to get married, but Cecilia's excessive jealousy might ruin everything. During a moment of intimacy, she is convinced she heard her future husband saying another woman's name, Elena. The situation quickly degenerates, so Cecilia leaves Tommaso and starts seeing a mysterious, older man named Enea. In the meantime, Amedeo becomes involved with Flora, the former girlfriend of another friend of theirs, Giorgio. When Amedeo's sister Chiara realises that she can't win Tommaso's heart, she spikes his coffee with rat poison in a comic scene. She is so jealous that she even sets Enea's motorcycle on fire. Tommaso tries to set things straight even turning to a two-bit spellcaster of white magic for help. It seems to work; Cecilia leaves Enea and goes back to Tommaso. Their wedding day arrives, but Tommaso does not show up at the church; his love for Cecilia is gone. He sends a message to Cecilia asking her to meet him at a local cafe. He is still wearing his wedding attire and she comes in her wedding dress. He tells her "men and women are not meant to be married", and agreeing she arranges to go out later that night with him.

Cast

* Massimo Troisi: Tommaso *

Francesca Neri Francesca Neri (born 10 February 1964) is an Italian actress. Biography Neri was born in Trento, Italy. She has twice received the Silver Ribbon Award for Best Actress from the Italian National Syndicate of Film Journalists, for ''Pensavo foss ...

: Cecilia *

Marco Messeri Marco Messeri (born 15 December 1948) is an Italian actor, comedian, stage director, singer-songwriter and voice actor. Life and career Born in Livorno, Messeri studied painting at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Firenze and acting at the drama s ...

: Enea * Angelo Orlando: Amedeo https://www.cinematografo.it/cinedatabase/cast/angelo-orlando/92047/ * Natalia Bizzi: Flora

Reception

It was the third highest-grossing Italian film in Italy in 1992 with a gross of $6.9 million.

References

External links

* 1991 films Films directed by Massimo Troisi Italian romantic comedy-drama films 1990s romantic comedy-drama films 1991 comedy films 1990s Italian-language films 1990s Italian films {{1990s-romantic-comedy-film-stub