''Goodnight, Ladies and Gentlemen'' (, ) is a 1976 French-

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

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...

comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film or a portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of three or more shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme, premise ...

. It comprises twelve episodes on themes of corruption in various Italian institutions, each by a different writer and director collectively credited as "Cooperativa 15 Maggio". The episodes are a satire of a typical programming day of an Italian public broadcaster, with a fictional '' TG3'' journalist (

Marcello Mastroianni Marcello Vincenzo Domenico Mastroianni (26 September 1924Come da lui stesso dichiarato a 1'10" dquesta intervista/ref> – 19 December 1996) was an Italian actor. He is generally regarded as one of Italy's most iconic male performers of the 20t ...

) interviewing a number of the other characters. The film stars

Vittorio Gassman Vittorio Gassman (; born Gassmann; 1 September 1922 – 29 June 2000), popularly known as , was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the greatest Italian actors, whose career includes both important producti ...

Ugo Tognazzi Ottavio "Ugo" Tognazzi (23 March 1922 – 27 October 1990) was an Italian actor, director, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the most important faces of Italian comedy together with Vittorio Gassman, Nino Manfredi, Marcello Mastr ...

, Nino Manfredi, Paolo Villaggio,

Senta Berger Senta Verhoeven (née Berger; ''Austrian German:'' , ; born 13 May 1941) is an Austrian-German actress. She received many award nominations for her acting in theatre, film, and television; her awards include three Bambi (prize), Bambi Awards, t ...

, Adolfo Celi, and Felice Andreasi.

Cast

as Paolo T. Fiume, a fictional television journalist for '' TG3'' news *

as CIA agent / Inspector Tuttunpezzo (

dual role A dual role (also known as a double role) refers to one actor playing two roles in a single production. Dual roles (or a larger number of roles for an actor) may be deliberately written into a script, or may instead be a choice made during produc ...

) * Nino Manfredi as Cardinal Felicetto de li Caprettari *

as the general / the retiree (dual role) * Paolo Villaggio as Professor Schmidt / quiz presenter (dual role) *

as Signora Palese * Adolfo Celi as Vladimiro Palese * Felice Andreasi as valet speaker in

Vatican City Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...

* Andréa Ferréol as Edvige * Sergio Graziani as Cardinal Canareggio * Monica Guerritore as Paolo's assistant * Carlo Croccolo as Questore *

Eros Pagni Eros Pagni (born 28 August 1939) is an Italian actor and voice actor. Biography Born in La Spezia, at the age of 17, Pagni started attending the Silvio d'Amico National Academy of Dramatic Arts in Rome and then went back to Genoa and played rol ...

as Commissioner Pertinace * Mario Scaccia as Cardinal Piazza-Colonna * Franco Scandurra as Cardinal Decano * Gianfranco Barra as policeman Nocella *

Renzo Marignano Renzo Marignano (26 March 1923 – 25 November 1987), sometimes credited as Renzo Marignani, was an Italian actor and film director. Born in Genoa, after World War II Marignano was one of the founders of ''Cimofilm'', a production company specia ...

as interviewer in Milan

Plot

The film focuses on various depictions of low corrupt society within Italy in the 1970s. The journalist Paolo T. Fiume (

) is a recurring character between various episodes within the film, in which he interviews a number of different characters.

Episodes

The

comprises twelve episodes: *''Gianni Agnelli kidnapped'' – A Milanese businessman (a fictionalized

Gianni Agnelli Giovanni "Gianni" Agnelli (; 12 March 192124 January 2003), nicknamed ("The Lawyer"), was an Italian industrialist and principal shareholder of Fiat S.p.A., Fiat. As the head of Fiat, he controlled 4.4% of Italy's GDP, 3.1% of its industrial ...

) is kidnapped; while interviewed on the news, he declares that his ransom will be deducted from his workers' salaries, citing their "familial bond" as justification. *''One Language for All – The English Lesson'' – A televised children's English lesson on the names of body parts is aided by an attractive female nude model. A CIA agent approaches her to aid in the assassination of a peace conference delegate, but she kills the agent as she is a spy for a rival agency. *''The Bomb'' – In a docudrama, a police superintendent and a fire chief evacuate a police station due to a bomb threat, only to find that it was a ticking alarm clock. Not wishing to appear foolish, they set a real bomb to destroy the building but mistakenly kill themselves in the process. *''A City in the Mirror'' – Naples triptych: **''Let the Little Children'' – A documentary shows the Archbishop of Naples publicly rewarding the pregnant mother of a large family for her fertility. Her oldest son has been working to support her and his eight siblings, but the burden becomes too much and he kills himself by jumping from the balcony. **''We Eat the Children'' – Following the suicide, a sociologist is interviewed regarding child poverty. The sociologist proposes to solve the overpopulation problem by eating babies of the poor, suggesting various cooking methods. **''The Four Politicians'' – A panel discussion with Naples' last four administrators is unable to focus on the city's problems. The four men are revealed to be related and had appointed each other to powerful offices. They attempt to divert the discussion with gibberish and evasion, then lose control and begin tearing apart and eating a model of the city. *''The Retreating General'' – While waiting to lead his soldiers at a celebratory parade, a general drops one of his medals in a toilet and becomes soiled while retrieving it. He becomes increasingly filthy while trying to remedy this and ultimately shoots himself in the head to avoid humiliation. *''Inspector Tuttumpezzo'' – A children's show, narrated in rhyme, shows the incorruptible police inspector Tuttumpezzo go to arrest a corrupt politician, who is hosting a party. However, due to deception and bizarre circumstances, Tuttumpezzo fails in his duty and serves as a waiter at the party. *''The Character of the Day'' – A journalist interviews a homeless retired man who begs and deceives to supplement his tiny pension. He claims that he wants for nothing, but breaks down at the mention of meat because he has not tasted meat in years. *''The Disgrace-o-meter'' (original: ''Il Disgraziometro'') – A quiz show which rewards the competitor with the greatest misfortunes. *''The Holy Throne'' – A docudrama examines a historical struggle for the papal throne. Two opposing bishops have most of the college of cardinals killed, then compromise on a seriously ill priest to act as their shared puppet. However, the new pope suddenly recovers, and the bishops regain their faith at this miracle – only to be executed by the pope, who had feigned illness for years in a plot to gain power. *''The Ceremony of the Caryatids'' – At the Italian Chamber of Deputies, a celebration marks the fourteenth term of President

Giovanni Leone Giovanni Leone (; 3 November 1908 – 9 November 2001) was an Italian politician, jurist and university professor who was President of Italy from 1971 to 1978. A founding member of Christian Democracy (Italy), Christian Democracy (DC), Leone br ...

, attended by the highest representatives of state and church, many of whom are very elderly and infirm, with a speech given by a man unable to articulate complete sentences. Following an ovation, those assembled suddenly unleash themselves in a lively ''

tarantella Tarantella () is a group of various Southern Italy, southern Italian Italian folk dance, folk dances originating in the regions of Calabria, Campania, Sicilia, and Apulia. It is characterized by a fast Beat (music), upbeat tempo, usually in Ti ...

'' folk dance. The broadcast returns to the studio where the host and his assistant share a passionate kiss and end the broadcast with "Ladies and gentlemen, goodnight".

Production

The filmmakers initially credited their work to "Cooperative 15 Maggio" to protect the individual writers, directors and producers from retaliation.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodnight, Ladies And Gentlemen 1976 films 1976 comedy films 1970s Italian-language films Italian anthology films Films directed by Luigi Comencini Films directed by Nanni Loy Films directed by Luigi Magni Films directed by Mario Monicelli Films directed by Ettore Scola Films set in Rome Films set in Naples Films set in Milan Films about journalism Films critical of the Catholic Church Films about terrorism Films about television Films with screenplays by Ugo Pirro Films with screenplays by Age & Scarpelli Films with screenplays by Ruggero Maccari Films with screenplays by Ettore Scola French anthology films French satirical films Italian satirical films 1970s Italian films 1970s French films Italian-language French films Italian-language comedy films