Review of Avanti

Introduction

I have a particularly soft spot for Billy Wilder`s 1972 romantic comedy "Avanti". It`s one of my Mum`s top ten movies of all time.

The basic premise of the story is an odd one. Wendell Armbruster Jr. (Jack Lemmon) is a successful business tycoon, running a multinational conglomerate. He is called from the golf course when his father dies in a car crash on the Italian island of Ischia in the Bay of Naples. He has to fly direct to Ischia to claim the body and make preparations for the funeral. On the way, he encounters a very pretty (but supposedly overweight) Englishwoman Pamela Piggott (Juliet Mills - who apparently gained weight to land the role but nobody in their right mind could call her fat-ass, which Armbruster does). Arriving on Ischia, Armbruster meets the proprietor of the spa hotel his father was staying at - the wily Carlucci (Clive Revill in the best performance of his career) - and clashes with the Italian pace of life.

Carlucci does his best to help Armbruster overcome what he perceives as the sluggishness of the Italian system, organising coffins,export licences etc.

Hold it, wind back a second. CoffinS? Export licenceS?

There were two people in the car when it came off the road. Wendell Armbruster Sr. and Catherine Piggott - Pamela Piggott`s mother. Over the course of the weekend, complications arise in the form of Italian farmers, a blackmailing valet, a maid with a moustache and an idiot from the State Department. And in spite of themselves, a relationship blooms between Armbruster and Miss Piggott.

"Avanti" is everything you expect from Billy Wilder and IAL Diamond. The script is witty, warm and fast-moving in spite of the leisurely running time of the picture. It`s based on a stage play, but radically rewritten by Wilder and his writing partner. Quite explicit for its time (language, nudity), much was made at the time the movie came out of the skinny-dipping sequence where Juliet Mills and Jack Lemmon swim out to a rock in the bay. There is little to offend, and much to find wonderfully amusing. It has its touching moments and moments of high comedy (not least the Trotta family who own the vineyard wrecked by the car crash, and who must have relatives in Peckham).

Video

Initial reports of the release of this movie suggested that it would be released in non-anamorphic 1.66:1, which may approximate the original aspect ratio for the picture. In the event, the print matches the R1 release, framed at the 1.85:1 it was shown in US cinemas. The print shows some wear and tear, which is unsurprising as this isn`t the kind of movie one would expect to get red carpet treatment in the vault.

Audio

The sound comes in a plain vanilla Dolby 2.0 Mono mix.

Features

This is the real disappointment of the release. Although thankfully full subtitles have been included, the meagre theatrical trailer of the R1 release hasn`t been included, so this is as bare bones a release as bare bones get. The long running time of the movie has probably forced compromises between including any extras and furninshing multilingual soundtracks and subtitles. Worryingly (again as with all recent MGM releases) the disc has been authored with only a setup menu and no scene selection menu. Navigation through the picture can only be done by the skip key of the remote.

Conclusion

When a maid wants to enter your hotel room, she calls "Permesso?" You`re supposed to call back "Avanti!" ("Forwards") if you want her to come in. That`s what Pamela Piggott tells uptight American tycoon Wendell Armbruster Jr. It`s the start of a beautiful relationship, but the road to romance is rocky, especially when they`re both mourning the passing of close family members.

This Billy Wilder comedy is one of the director`s last pictures and one of his most underrated comedies. Jack Lemmon turns in his most uptight performance since "The Odd Couple", Juliet Mills is the sexiest fat chick you`ll ever clap eyes on and Clive Revill shines as the wiliest hotel manager in Italy. A classic, and one of the movies I`d take to a desert island with me.