''The Country of the Campanelli'' ( it, Il paese dei campanelli, french: Ces voyous d'hommes, also known as ''Town of Bells'') is a 1954 Italian-French

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by Jean Boyer and starring

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

. It is loosely based on the

operetta Operetta is a form of theatre and a genre of light opera. It includes spoken dialogue, songs, and dances. It is lighter than opera in terms of its music, orchestral size, length of the work, and at face value, subject matter. Apart from its s ...

"Il paese dei campanelli" by

Carlo Lombardo Carlo Lombardo dei Baroni Lombardo di San Chirico (Naples, 28 November 1869 – Milan, 19 December 1959) known also under the composer-pseudonyms Léon Bard, Leo Bard, Leblanc and M. Fernandez, was an Italian operetta impresario, comedian, libre ...

. The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...

Piero Filippone Piero Filippone (1911–1998) was an Italian art director who designed the sets for around two hundred films. He created the sets for Roberto Rossellini's 1954 film '' Journey to Italy''.Brunette p.416 Selected filmography * '' Three Cornered H ...

Plot

A fraudulent travelling magician convinces the inhabitants of a town that they can make the

bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inter ...

s ring whenever someone is unfaithful to another.

Cast

as Bonbon *

Carlo Dapporto Carlo Dapporto (26 June 1911 – 1 October 1989) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 35 films between 1944 and 1987. He was born in Sanremo, Italy and died in Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC ...

as Lt. La Gaffe *

Mario Riva Mario Riva (26 January 1913 – 1 September 1960) was an Italian television presenter and actor. He appeared in 51 films between 1941 and 1960. Life and career Born in Rome as Mariuccio Bonavolontà, the son of a composer, Giuseppe (Joseph) ...

as Tarquinio the Magician *

Alda Mangini Alda Mangini (1914–1954) was an Italian singer and film actress.Ponzi p.67 She appeared in several films alongside the Neapolitan comedian Totò Antonio Griffo Focas Flavio Angelo Ducas Comneno Porfirogenito Gagliardi de Curtis di Bisanzio ...

as Tenerina * Luisella Beghi as Candida *

Sergio Tofano Sergio Tòfano (20 August 1886 – 28 October 1973) was an Italian actor, director, playwright, scene designer and illustrator. Tofano was born in Rome. In 1909, he made his first appearance on stage with Ermete Novelli, then joined Virgil ...

as Dr. Pott *

Achille Togliani Achille Togliani (16 January 1924 in Pomponesco, province of Mantua – 12 August 1995) was an Italian singer and actor. He was a participant in the first Sanremo Music Festival in 1951. Achille's version of the song 'Parlami d'amore Mariù ...

as René *

Giuseppe Addobbati Giuseppe Addobbati (31 December 1909 – 4 January 1986) was an Italian film actor known for his roles in Spaghetti Western and action films in the 1960s and 1970s. He was often billed as John MacDouglas for films released to an American audien ...

as Tom *

Rosita Pisano Rosa Pisano (15 October 1919 – 24 December 1975) was an Italian stage, film and television actress. Life and career Pisano was born in Naples, into a family of dialect theatre actors. She debuted on stage as a child actress in her family comp ...

as Annie *

Alberto Talegalli Alberto Talegalli (2 October 1913 – 10 July 1961) was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 37 films between 1952 and 1961. He was born in Pincano (Spoleto), Italy and died in Gualdo Tadino, in the province of Perugia, Italy. Life and c ...

as Bruto * Charles Fawcett as Admiral *

Diana Dei Diana Dei (born Agnese Mancinelli, 1 March 1914Alberto Sorrentino Alberto Sorrentino (16 February 1916 – 31 January 1994), was an Italian film actor. He appeared in 89 films between 1943 and 1988. He was born in La Spezia, Italy. Selected filmography * '' The Last Wagon'' (1943) - Un passante * '' I c ...

as The Stupid Sailor *

Riccardo Billi Riccardo Billi (22 April 1906 – 15 April 1982) was an Italian film actor and comedian. With Mario Riva he appeared as ''Billi & Riva'', one of the most popular Italian comic duos in the 1950s. He appeared in around 85 films between 1938 a ...

References

External links

* Italian comedy films French comedy films 1954 comedy films 1954 films Films directed by Jean Boyer 1950s French films 1950s Italian films {{1950s-France-film-stub