Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Il Mattatore Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 18, 2024

Note: This film is available on Blu-ray as part of Radiance's Commedia all'italiana: Three Films by Dino Risi set.

Any film fan worth his or her salt would probably respond with a near instant "Neorealism!" if asked to name a post-World War II genre in Italian cinema. What came next is the focus of a really appealing three film set from Radiance, which further serves as a trio of examples of the wide ranging if kind of weirdly lesser remembered work of Dino Risi. Supplements on the three discs in this set offer a primer of sorts for those unacquainted with either/both neorealismo rosa (i.e., "Pink Neorealism") or/and commedia all'italiana (i.e., "Italian style comedy"), and provide some really interesting context of what Italy was going through both overtly and perhaps on a subliminal level as it dug itself out from the horrors of Fascism and the devastating effects of a global conflict where it initially at least played a central part in hostilities. The "transition" from neorealismo rosa to commedia all'italiana was perhaps not "cut and dried", and so the three Risi films may at various times reflect different aspects of both of these perceived genres, but all three stories offer some trenchant observations about Italian culture and its basic socioeconomic framework in the late fifties to early sixties, and two of the three films offer showcases for Vittorio Gassman, who was, as one supplement included in this set gets into, suddenly an "overnight sensation" as a frequently buffoonish comedy performer after having earned plaudits for much more serious stage and film work, including celebrated performances in plays by Shakespeare.

Those of you who may be word geeks like yours truly might almost automatically think that the etymology of mattatore certainly must be related to matador, but that is evidently not the case according to one of the supplements on this disc (even if I suspect some Indo-European cognate must have given birth to both words at one point). Mattatore has a kind of dual meaning in Italian, with "showman" turning up as the first translation in many online apps, but (again, according to a supplement) with a secondary meaning of someone who works in a slaughterhouse. That "slaughtering" aspect certainly comes into play with regard to bullfighters, of course, but the "slaying" in this film is more along the lines of hyperbolic PR verbiage with regard to some performance.

Il Mattatore was evidently actually also the name of a television series starring Gassman which showcased the actor's skills in a skit format where he was able to portray a wide variety of characters. That same conceit is utilized in this film, though rather interestingly it's tweaked a bit so that focal character Gerardo Latini (Vittorio Gassman) is an aspiring actor with a flair for dialects which allows him to operate as a conman, leading to unexpected (or maybe expected) consequences.

While the story begins with an evidently domesticated Latini settled down with Elena (Dorian Gray, evidently Gassman's ex according to a supplement, giving some of the discord between the characters a bit of heft). The bulk of the film, however, is extended flashback vignettes documenting Latini's various grifts, offered in what indeed tends to play as a series of skits, some landing more effectively than others. That said, this is a rather winningly breezy affair all the way through, and it has a couple of kind of delicious "who's grifting whom" moments stacked on each other both as the flashbacks end and then with a final reveal.

Il Mattatore Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Il Mattatore is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Radiance Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.25. While Radiance's packaging doesn't offer much technical information, the presentation starts with the following text cards (in Italian, translated in the subtitles as follows):

This digital restoration was performed in 2016 by Luce Cinecitta based on the original 35mm film and soundtrack negatives and on restored duplicates for certain scenes.

Radiance's insert booklet further specifies that this was a 2K scan. This is another really winning looking presentation, with consistently strong fine detail throughout on any number of elements like fabric textures or even patterns on things like outfits. The bulk of the film is in black and white, with secure contrast and some really nicely modulated gray scale. For no real discernable reason, things transition to color for just the last few seconds, and those moments look commendably robust, if perhaps skewed just a tad toward yellow, making reds appear a bit on the orange side. There is occasional minimal damage and/or signs of age related wear and tear, including things like hair in the gate toward the bottom of the frame, and some noticeable print through and scratching. Grain resolves naturally, spiking expectedly in opticals like dissolves.

Il Mattatore Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Il Mattatore features an LPCM 2.0 Mono track in the original Italian. As with all three soundtracks in the Risi set, you can definitely hear the limitations of the recording technologies of the day, with a somewhat boxy sound, but with good fluidity and no real problems other than an occasionally pretty bright and strident sounding high end, something that's probably most noticeable in musical moments, though Pippa Barzizza's jaunty theme, which comes off like the musical love child of Nino Rota and Bert Kaempfert, sounds great. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English subtitles are available.

Il Mattatore Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Andrea Bini (HD; 23:45) offers the author of the wonderfully named Male Anxiety and Psychopathology in Film: Comedy Italian Style, discussing the genre and Risi.


• Speaking With Gassman (HD; 30:46) is a documentary from 2005 offering Dino Risi reminiscing about Gassman (who appears in archival footage). Risi is interviewed by his son, Marco. Subtitled in English.


• Michel Hazanavicius (HD; 24:27) offers the Academy Award winning French director talking about this film's influence on him, and how he wanted to remake it at one point with Jean Dujardin. You kind of have to love it when Hazanavicius compares Dujardin to Gassman by saying neither actor is "afraid of cliche" in their performance styles. Subtitled in English.


• Trailer (HD; 4:15)

Il Mattatore Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Il Mattatore offers Gassman a veritable grab bag of (ostensibly) "different" characters, and if some of the bits land more effectively than others, the film has a really breezily winning quality throughout. The ending in particular offers a one two (three?) "punch" of reveals that is admirably enjoyable. Technical merits are generally solid, and the supplements very enjoyable. Recommended.