''Satyricon'', also named ''The Degenerates'', is an Italian film from 1969 directed by

Gian Luigi Polidoro Gian Luigi Polidoro (4 February 1927 – 7 September 2000) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 16 films between 1956 and 1998. His 1963 film '' Il diavolo'' won the Golden Bear at the 13th Berlin International Film F ...

. Like the more famous version made by

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...

it is loosely based on

Petronius Gaius Petronius Arbiter"Gaius Petronius Arbiter"
Satyricon The ''Satyricon'', ''Satyricon'' ''liber'' (''The Book of Satyrlike Adventures''), or ''Satyrica'', is a Latin work of fiction believed to have been written by Gaius Petronius, though the manuscript tradition identifies the author as Titus Petro ...

'', a series of bawdy and satirical episodes written during the reign of the emperor

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...

and set in imperial Rome.

Plot

Encolpius and Ascyltus are two corrupt boys roaming the mean streets of

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

at the time of the empire of

. Both boys constantly engage in conflict with each other for the love of the young Gitone, who often prefers Ascyltus, infuriating lover Encolpius. Due to a misunderstanding, the three end up in the house of a rich freedman: the crude Trimalchio, who in his rich dinner amazes guests with exuberant courses. Escaping from the house of the crude man, Ascyltus and Encolpius continue to fight for Gitone until Encolpius makes friends with the poet Eumolpus, while Ascyltus dies of diseases. Gitone is now only in the company of Encolpius, who cannot satisfy Gitone's amorous pleasures because of a curse hurled at him by the god Priapus, the protector of the cocks. After inheriting a rich mansion by chance by a senator named Pomponius, Encolpius, Eumolpus and Gitone go in a city where their troubles do not end because of the magic spells of a witch, soothsayer of the god Priapus.

Cast

Don Backy Don Backy (real name Aldo Caponi; born 21 August 1939) is an Italian singer, songwriter and actor. He collaborated with Sofia Rotaru for "Grey Bird" – Ukrainian version of Italian song " L'immensità"— "Сизокрилий птах". Select ...

: Encolpio *

Franco Fabrizi Franco Fabrizi (; 15 February 1916 – 18 October 1995) was an Italian actor. Life and career Son of a barber and a cinema cashier, Franco Fabrizi started his career as a model and an actor in fotoromanzi. Fabrizi also starred on several revu ...

: Ascilto * Francesco Pau: Gitone *

Mario Carotenuto Mario Carotenuto (30 June 1916 – 14 April 1995) was an Italian actor of film and theatre. Biography Carotenuto, the son of a silent film actor and younger brother of the actor Memmo Carotenuto, took various humble jobs for many years be ...

: Eumolpo *

Tina Aumont Maria Christina "Tina" Aumont (February 14, 1946 – October 28, 2006) was an American actress. She was the daughter of French actor Jean-Pierre Aumont and Dominican actress Maria Montez. She made her acting debut in the British film ''Modesty Bl ...

: Circe *

Valérie Lagrange Valérie Lagrange (born 25 February 1942) is a French actress and singer. She starred in the 1960 adventure film '' Morgan, the Pirate''.Hughes p.39 Selected filmography * ''The Green Mare'' (1959) * '' Morgan, the Pirate'' (1960) * ''The Cors ...

: Trifena *

Amerigo Tot Amerigo Tot (born Imre Tóth; 27 September 1909 – 13 December 1984) was a Hungarian sculptor and occasional actor. Born in Fehérvárcsurgó, Austria-Hungary he moved to Rome towards the end of the 1920s, where he lived for the rest of his lif ...

: Lica (Trifena's husband) *

Graziella Granata Graziella Granata (born 16 March 1941) is an Italian retired film and stage actress. After graduating at the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, and after some secondary roles in adventure films and comedies, thanks to a film contract with Ang ...

: Antonia *

Piero Gerlini This is a list of male actors from Italy, which generally includes those who have resided in Italy or have largely appeared in Italian film productions. This list includes all actors from :Italian male actors. Persons are listed alphabetical ...

: Abinna (Antonia's husband) *

Corrado Olmi Corrado Olmi (24 October 1926 – 29 December 2020)
w ...

: Seleuco *

Clara Colosimo Clara Colosimo (23 May 1922 – 15 June 1994) was an Italian film actress. She appeared in 65 films between 1968 and 1991. Selected filmography * ''Alfredo, Alfredo'' (1972) * '' Sex Pot'' (1975) * '' Il mostro'' (1977) * '' Zanna Bianca e ...

: Seleuco's Wife *

Paola Tedesco Paola Tedesco (born 28 March 1952) is an Italian actress, voice actress and singer. Biography Born in Rome, the daughter of voice actor and tenor Sergio Tedesco and the younger sister of film producer Maurizio Tedesco, Paola Tedesco made her fil ...

: Criside *

Ugo Tognazzi Ugo Tognazzi (23 March 1922 – 27 October 1990) was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. Early life Tognazzi was born in Cremona, in northern Italy but spent his youth in various localities as his father was a travelling clerk fo ...

: Trimalchione

Content, changes, and controversy

The director and producer were accused of corruption and obscenity, and fined for the production.

Rivalry over the title

Alfredo Bini Alfredo Bini (12 December 1926 – 16 October 2010) was an Italian film producer. He produced 32 films between 1958 and 1979. He was born in Livorno, Italy. Selected filmography * ''The Law Is the Law'' (1958) * '' Il bell'Antonio'' (1960) ...

had registered the ''Satyricon'' title in 1962. When

and Alberto Grimaldi started work on their film, Bini contracted

to direct his own version. Grimaldi sued Bini to halt the competing film, but lost; as a result, Fellini's picture was titled ''

Fellini Satyricon ''Fellini Satyricon'', or simply ''Satyricon'', is a 1969 Italian fantasy drama film written and directed by Federico Fellini and loosely based on Petronius's work '' Satyricon'', written during the reign of Emperor Nero and set in Imperial R ...

'' to distinguish it.Tullio Kezich "Fellini: His Life and Work", 292

Releases

To prevent the film from competing with Fellini's, United Artists reportedly bought the distribution rights to keep it off the market. However, lobby cards and posters for Italian, Belgian, Spanish, and English language screenings are known to exist, and are occasionally sold on the internet, although most of the non-Italian versions avoid the name of ''Satyricon'' and use ''The Degenerates'' (or translations of that word) instead. It has also been released on VHS by domovideo, and a cut and cropped version has been known to air on the Italian channels

Iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional ent ...

and

Mediaset Mediaset Italia S.p.A., also known as Mediaset, is an Italian-based mass media company which is the largest commercial broadcaster in the country. The company is controlled by the holding company MFE - MediaForEurope. Founded in 1987 by former ...

Italia 1 Italia 1 (Italian pronunciation ) is an Italian free-to-air television channel on the Mediaset network, owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. It is oriented at both young and adult people. Italia 1 was launched on 3 January 1982 and, originally, was o ...

at some time after the year 2000. The soundtrack by Carlo Rustichelli has been released as a vinyl album in 1969 by

Cinevox Cinevox is an Italian record label specializing in the release of motion picture soundtrack albums. Founded in 1966 in music, 1966, the label has released more than 200 titles, including numerous works by Ennio Morricone, Pino Donaggio, and variou ...

, and as a CD in 2010 by Saimel.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0166788, Satyricon 1969 films 1969 drama films Italian drama films Italian fantasy films Italian satirical films Italian LGBT-related films 1960s Italian-language films Latin-language films Films set in ancient Rome Films set in the Roman Empire Works based on the Satyricon Films scored by Carlo Rustichelli 1960s Italian films